Reports of Sexual Violence Escalate Amid Sudanese Conflict

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been accused of committing extensive sexual violence in Khartoum, including gang rapes and forced marriages, during their conflict with the army, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW). Reports reveal targeting of women and girls, with some cases amounting to sexual slavery.

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been accused of extensive sexual violence in Khartoum, including gang rape and forced marriages, according to a report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) released on Monday.

HRW attributes some attacks to the army, which has been in conflict with the RSF since April 2023. The report includes accounts of RSF holding women and girls in conditions approximating sexual slavery and assaulting them in front of their families.

Both RSF and the army had previously denied responsibility for abuses. One woman living in an RSF-controlled area said she slept with a knife under her pillow for months for protection. The conflict has also led to ethnically motivated attacks in Darfur, targeting women and men alike.