Human Rights Situation in and Around El Fasher, in the Context of the Ongoing Conflict in the Sudan

A/HRC/RES/S-38/1View PDF

Who created this mandate?

A document of the Human Rights Council, published in 2025.

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Extracted automatically from each entity’s budget submission.

What subjects does this mandate have?

7 topics

Accountability Darfur (Sudan)Human Rights Human Rights in Armed Conflicts Humanitarian Assistance Internal Security Sudan

What does this mandate say?

18 operative paragraphs

Strongly condemns the escalating violence and reported atrocities committed by the Rapid Support Forces and their associated and allied forces in and around El Fasher, following their assault on the city, including large-scale atrocities such as ethnically motivated killings, torture, summary executions, forced recruitment and the arbitrary detention of civilians, as well as widespread use of rape and other forms of sexual and gender-based violence as a weapon of warfare;

Expresses deep concern about the catastrophic humanitarian consequences in El Fasher and its surrounding areas, with reports that a significant number of civilians, including thousands of children, remain trapped in the city, facing forced displacement, large-scale attacks, gender-based and sexual violence, extortion, arbitrary arrest and detention by the Rapid Support Forces, and that tens of thousands of people have been displaced from El Fasher since 26 October 2025 to nearby towns, including Tawilah and Mellit, where they lack access to clean water, food and medical care and are increasingly vulnerable to malnutrition and disease;

Expresses alarm at the presence of famine conditions in El Fasher and Kadugli, as confirmed by the Famine Review Committee of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification on 3 November 2025, according to which over 21.2 million people are experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity and 375,000 people, the majority of whom are in Darfur, are affected by famine-like conditions, and these conditions are likely to be present in other areas as well, and condemns the use of starvation as a weapon of warfare;

Condemns reported attacks on and kidnappings of humanitarian and health workers and attacks on hospitals and health infrastructure, including reports of the killing of over 460 patients and health workers in the Saudi Maternity Hospital in El Fasher, and reiterates that medical personnel, humanitarian workers and civilian infrastructure across the Sudan must be respected and protected;

Calls upon all parties to allow and facilitate immediate, full, safe and unhindered humanitarian access throughout the Sudan, including a rapid scale-up of cross-border and cross-line delivery, condemns the deprivation by all parties to the conflict of essential humanitarian assistance, and in particular calls upon the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces to allow life-saving aid to reach the affected population in El Fasher and surrounding areas;

Welcomes the statement of the Sudan Quad of 12 September 2025, including its call for a humanitarian truce, for an initial three months, to enable the swift entry of humanitarian aid to all parts of the Sudan, to lead immediately to a permanent ceasefire;

Reiterates its call for the full implementation of the Jeddah Declaration of Commitment to Protect the Civilians of Sudan, and calls upon all parties to the conflict to ensure the protection of civilians, as required under international law, including by ensuring that the Rapid Support Forces allow civilians wishing to do so to move within or away from El Fasher to safer areas, including to the towns of Tawilah and Mellit;

Emphasizes that there is no military solution to the crisis in the Sudan, and reiterates its call for an immediate and complete ceasefire by all parties, without preconditions, the establishment of an independent monitoring mechanism of the ceasefire, the rehabilitation of critical basic infrastructure, a negotiated and peaceful resolution to the conflict on the basis of inclusive, Sudan-owned and Sudan-led dialogue, with the active participation of Sudanese civilian actors, including women and youth, and the establishment, with the people of the Sudan, of a credible and inclusive process of political transition, towards a democratically elected national Government following a civilian-led transition period;

Urges all parties and States to respect and uphold the unity and territorial integrity of the Sudan and to reject the establishment of a parallel governing authority in areas controlled by the Rapid Support Forces;

Reiterates its strong condemnation of the continuing armed conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, and their associated and allied forces, all reported violations of international humanitarian law and all violations and abuses of human rights committed in this context, including alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity;

Condemns all forms of external interference that fuel the conflict, and reminds all parties to the conflict, as well as external actors, both States and other entities, that facilitate the transfer of arms and military material to Darfur of their obligation to respect and enforce the existing arms embargo in Darfur, in effect pursuant to Security Council resolution 1556 (2004) of 30 July 2004 and subsequent resolutions;

Commends Sudanese and regional relief and aid workers and local responders, including local actors and mutual aid groups, operating in North Darfur and other areas of the Sudan for their bravery and work in challenging and dangerous circumstances to provide life-saving support to communities, and calls for their protection;

Stresses, once again, that ensuring accountability for violations of international humanitarian law and violations and abuses of human rights is central to any solution to the ongoing crisis in the Sudan, and underscores the urgency of independent and credible investigations into all alleged abuses and violations by all parties to the conflict, to end impunity and hold accountable those responsible through robust and credible criminal justice processes, while acknowledging the important role that the International Criminal Court can play in this regard;

Requests the independent international fact-finding mission for the Sudan to conduct, consistent with its mandate, an urgent inquiry into the recent violations and abuses of international human rights law and violations of international humanitarian law allegedly committed in and around El Fasher;

Also requests the fact-finding mission to identify, where possible, all those for whom there are reasonable grounds to believe that they are responsible for alleged violations and abuses of international human rights law in and around El Fasher and to support efforts to ensure that the perpetrators of alleged abuses and violations are held accountable;

Encourages the fact-finding mission to give due regard to ensuring the complementarity of its efforts with those of other actors, including independent national accountability efforts and regional investigations;

Requests the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to present an oral update to the Human Rights Council on the human rights situation in and around El Fasher, in the context of the ongoing conflict in the Sudan, followed by an interactive dialogue, before its sixty-first session, and requests the fact-finding mission to present a report on the findings of its inquiry to the Council at its sixty-first session, followed by an enhanced interactive dialogue to be combined with the dialogue with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the designated Expert on human rights in the Sudan, as requested by the Council in its resolution 57/2;

Decides to remain seized of the matter.

14 November 2025

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