Journalist Recounts El Fasher Siege Crime by the UAE-backed RSF

A journalist’s reconnection after three years of near-total isolation due to communication collapse in Sudan’s war has exposed UAE-backed RSF massacre during the brutal 18-month seige of El Fasher.

Communications in El Fasher had deteriorated into a full blackout since May 2023 as the UAE-backed Rapid Support Forces (RSF) imposed an 18-month siege on the city. Journalist Mohamed Suleiman described the isolation as “a suffocating feeling,” noting his phone remained inactive until January 13, 2026, when he reached Port Sudan.

During the blackout, limited access to Starlink satellite devices was restricted, constraining reporting and information flow.

The siege culminated in October 2025 with the fall of El Fasher, described by Suleiman as “the Day of Judgment on Earth.” Civilians faced famine conditions declared by a UN-backed monitor, with widespread shortages of food, water, and medical aid.

Suleiman described the silence imposed by the communications blackout as a threat in itself, leaving civilians unable to call for help or warn others of incoming strikes.

“If I had been injured, I would have died,” he said, recalling a shell that landed less than two meters from him in July 2025.

Even turning on a phone screen risked exposure, forcing residents to hide under beds or in makeshift trenches for up to seven hours during bombardments, often in extreme heat and without speaking.

Suleiman recounted: “We saw dead children in the streets,” and described fleeing civilians encountering “very, very large numbers, countless numbers” of casualties along routes to Tawila.

He also recounted the psychological toll of displacement and survival, where people were forced to abandon the wounded due to a lack of transport, food, or medical aid.

“There is no food, no water, no first aid… you cannot do anything,” he said, describing how civilians stepped over the injured while fleeing toward Tawila.

Many of those fleeing were known personally to each other, deepening the trauma of leaving behind neighbors, friends, and even children.

UN-backed experts stated that atrocities in El Fasher bear “hallmarks of genocide,” citing ethnic killings, rape, and destruction.

Other experts using satellite and sensor data identified attacks on 41 farming communities aimed at destroying food supplies prior to the siege.

A report by Doctors Without Borders (MSF) covering 2024-2025 documented widespread sexual violence in Darfur, including systematic rape attributed to UAE-backed RSF and allied forces.

International response remains limited. Only 16.2% of the UN’s $2.87bn funding requirement for 2026 has been met.

“There is no international law in the world,” Suleiman said, adding: “There is no ceasefire, no medicine, no basic necessities of life.”

Despite reaching Port Sudan after a journey lasting more than two months through Chad, Suleiman said the sense of dislocation persisted. Having lost his identification documents, he spent 22 days navigating administrative hurdles to prove his identity.

“What happens to the person who comes out of the war and has no one?” he asked, highlighting the bureaucratic barriers facing survivors emerging from conflict zones.