Sudan – The international human rights organization Human Rights Watch accused, on Monday, both parties to the war in Sudan, and more specifically the Rapid Support Forces, of committing widespread rape in the capital, Khartoum, and called for the deployment of a force to protect civilians.
Since April 2023, the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces have been waging a war that has left about 15,000 dead and about 10 million displaced and refugees, according to the United Nations.
The New York-based organization released an 88-page report on Monday titled “Khartoum No Longer Safe for Women: Sexual Violence Against Women and Girls in Sudan’s Capital.”
It said it collected testimonies from 42 health care providers and field workers, who reported 262 cases of sexual violence in Khartoum between April 2023 and February 2024.
The organization said in its report that “the Rapid Support Forces committed widespread acts of sexual violence in the areas they control in Khartoum, which constitutes war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
She explained that “the victims of this violence are mainly girls and women between the ages of 9 and 60 (…) and were particularly subjected to rape and gang rape.”
The organization added that “among the victims treated by health workers, who Human Rights Watch interviewed, at least four women died as a result of injuries they sustained as a result of the violence they were subjected to.”
“The Rapid Support Forces raped, gang-raped, and forced into marriage a large number of women and girls in residential areas of Khartoum,” said Letitia Bader, deputy director of the organization’s Africa division, in the report.
According to medical providers, some victims said “they were raped by up to five RSF fighters.”
The organization added: “In some cases, members of the Rapid Support Forces sexually assaulted women and girls in front of their family members, and these forces also forced women and girls into marriage.”
Regarding the Sudanese army, Human Rights Watch said that “a smaller number of cases (of rape) were attributed to members of the Sudanese Armed Forces.”
She added: “However, a slight increase in cases was reported after the Sudanese Armed Forces took control of Omdurman (Khartoum) in early 2024.”
It concluded by accusing the Rapid Support Forces of committing “crimes against humanity,” and accusing both sides of committing “war crimes” for their attacks on the health system, and preventing victims from accessing emergency and comprehensive health care.
The organization called on the United Nations and the African Union to “work together immediately to deploy a mission (force) to protect civilians in Sudan, including preventing sexual violence (…) and supporting the provision of comprehensive services to all victims, and documenting sexual violence.”
She also urged countries to “work together to impose sanctions on leaders responsible for sexual violence and attacks on health care workers.”
Until 09:20 GMT, there was no comment from the army or the Rapid Support Forces, but both parties had previously denied the validity of similar accusations that have been repeated since the beginning of the current war.
Anatolia
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2024-07-29 20:44:42
