Sudan Torture Survivor Seeks UK Counter-Terror Probe Into RSF Links

A survivor of Sudan’s war has formally asked British counter-terrorism police to investigate three UK-based Sudanese men for alleged links to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), sharpening scrutiny of how overseas networks sustain one of Africa’s most destructive conflicts.

According to an exclusive story by Middle East Eye, the submission, filed this week to SO15, the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command, reframes Sudan’s violence as not only a battlefield crisis but also a transnational accountability test for European law enforcement.

Pressure on UK Jurisdiction

Yaslam Altayeb, a Sudanese-Dutch resident of the UK, was seized in Khartoum in April 2023 shortly after fighting erupted between UAE-linked RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces. He was held in captivity for 15 days, during which he says he was abused and witnessed detainees being killed, tortured, and humiliated. He was later released with the assistance of British and Dutch authorities.

On Tuesday, Altayeb’s lawyers referred three men to SO15 under provisions of the International Criminal Court Act 2001 and the Criminal Justice Act 1988, which allow UK courts to pursue torture and war crimes cases with international dimensions.

Altayeb urged police action, saying: “I call on SO15 to immediately investigate these individuals who are able to live and mobilise freely in the UK.”

There must be no comfort, no stage, and no safety for those responsible for genocide.

RSF Torture Survivor Yaslam Altayeb

One of those named is Faris al-Nour, formerly a media adviser to RSF leader Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo. Altayeb says Nour spoke to him by phone during his detention and was involved in the affair.

Nour, who is alleged to spend significant time in London, was named in July as governor of Khartoum state in the RSF’s parallel administration based in Nyala, even as RSF militants were being pushed from much of the capital’s surrounding state.

“Kill but Don’t Film”

Also cited is Abdelmonem al-Rabee, a Sheffield taxi driver and alleged RSF propagandist whose TikTok, YouTube, and X accounts amassed tens of thousands of followers. After RSF militants uploaded videos of massacres following the seizure of el-Fasher on 27 October, Rabee urged them, “kill as much as you want, but don’t film.”

Tens of thousands of people are believed to have been killed by RSF militants in el-Fasher. According to a report by The Guardian, satellite images indicated widespread killing in El Fasher following its capture by the Rapid Support Forces, with mass graves, body piles, and cremation pits visible across the city. British MPs were told at least 60,000 people are believed dead and up to 150,000 missing since 26 October 2025, with human rights experts calling it potentially the worst atrocity of Sudan’s civil war.

Rabee later appeared online alongside a militia known as Abu Lulu, seen in videos shooting unarmed civilians.

The third individual, Omran Abdallah, has been interviewed in the media as an RSF representative and in March 2024 downplayed reports of sexual abuse by RSF militants in Khartoum.

Altayeb’s complaint argues that Nour was directly involved in his detention and abuse, and that Rabee and Abdallah are liable for incitement, citing online calls for violence.

In Persuit of Justice

His lawyer, Rodney Dixon KC, urged the Metropolitan Police to open an immediate and thorough investigation into the named individuals living freely without sanction in the UK, saying there was “clear and obvious evidence” that should be acted on without delay.

Altayeb says he now suffers chronic back and neck pain from beatings and has been diagnosed with PTSD. He has also described seeing bodies removed from the Khartoum detention center in Riyadh neighborhood to a mass grave. Two mass graves containing thousands of bodies were recently discovered in the same area.

A Devastating War

Since the war began in April 2023, tens of thousands have been killed and about 13 million displaced, leaving Sudan divided between an internationally recognized government in Khartoum and an RSF-backed administration in Nyala.

In December, the UK sanctioned four RSF leaders for suspected atrocities including mass killings and sexual violence. Nour, Rabee, and Abdallah were not among those designated.

Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) though, leader of the RSF militia and one of the central figures in the country’s civil war, was one of the four leaders sanctioned by the UK and is accused by multiple governments and human rights organizations of overseeing mass atrocities, including killings, sexual violence, and ethnic cleansing.

Altayeb’s legal team also sought sanctions in July against 23 men, including senior RSF officials and two United Arab Emirates officers identified as key patrons. Although Abu Dhabi denies backing the RSF, Altayeb’s campaign has drawn support from MPs Andrew Mitchell and Iain Duncan Smith, as well as fellow former detainee Siddig Ismail.

RSF Mercenary Network and Supply Lines

The allegations intersect with a wider pattern of external enablement. UAE-linked RSF sustains combat power through a layered mercenary system, with foreign specialists and regional fighters reinforcing battlefield capacity, and cross-border recruitment and flexible logistics sustaining operations.

Altayeb argues that the UK now sits at one of those junctions, where propaganda, logistics, and accountability collide. In his view, London’s role as a global financial, media, and transport hub gives British authorities both leverage and responsibility - either to disrupt networks linked to alleged war crimes or to allow those accused of enabling abuses abroad to continue operating freely at home.