Sudan’s civil war, now stretching into its third year, has reached yet another horrifying milestone with the fall of El Fasher to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The capture of this North Darfur city, after an 18-month siege, has unleashed a wave of violence and humanitarian suffering that United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres recently described as “spiraling out of control.” The events unfolding in El Fasher and across Sudan are not only a testament to the brutality of the conflict but also to the world’s faltering ability to respond to one of the worst humanitarian crises in modern history.
On November 4, 2025, the RSF seized El Fasher from the Sudanese military, ending a siege that had left the city’s residents cut off from food, medical care, and safety. According to the Sudan Doctors Network, at least 1,500 civilians have been killed since the takeover, including more than 450 people who lost their lives in a single hospital. These numbers are staggering, but they only scratch the surface of the suffering. More than 40,000 people have died since the conflict erupted in April 2023, and over 14 million have been forced from their homes, as reported by Foreign Policy.
Testimonies from displaced Sudanese civilians, collected by France 24 on November 5, paint a grim picture of life in El Fasher after the RSF’s victory. Residents describe relentless violence, deteriorating living conditions, and a climate of fear. The RSF, accused of summary executions, sexual violence, and violations of international humanitarian law, has denied any wrongdoing. Yet, the International Criminal Court has already begun gathering evidence of mass killings and rapes in the city, following the RSF’s capture.
One particularly chilling chapter in this saga centers on Al-Fateh Abdullah Idris, better known as Abu Lulu or the “Butcher of El-Fasher.” On October 30, 2025, the RSF arrested Abu Lulu for “human rights violations.” The arrest followed a series of gruesome live-streamed videos in which he boasted about killing over 2,000 people—sometimes smiling as he shot unarmed civilians who pleaded for mercy. The BBC and The Independent report that Abu Lulu’s TikTok account, now banned, featured him committing atrocities, including executing a restaurant owner after confirming his ethnicity and shooting a row of men at point-blank range. In one video, he reportedly said, “I wanted to kill 2,000, but I’m sure the number exceeded 2,000, but I got confused about the calculation. I lost track of it, but I will do it again starting from zero.”
The RSF claims Abu Lulu’s arrest is a move against human rights abuses, releasing a video of him being transported under heavy guard to Shala Prison. However, many Sudanese and international observers dismiss this as a public relations stunt. As Sudanese writer Mohamed Suliman told The Guardian, “many Sudanese did not buy into this and launched a hashtag: ‘You are all Abu Lulu’ – meaning the entire militia acts like him.” The RSF had previously denied any connection to Abu Lulu, yet his ties to the group run deep. He joined the RSF special forces in 2013, aided by family connections to the group’s leader, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (known as Hemedti), and rose rapidly through the ranks, even serving as a personal guard to Hemedti’s brother, Abdelrheem Dagalo.
The violence in El Fasher is only one part of a much larger tragedy. Satellite images confirm that over 2,000 people, including women and children, were slaughtered during the RSF’s assault on the city. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a U.N.-backed hunger monitor, confirmed on November 3 that famine conditions are now present in El Fasher for the first time since the war began. The situation is so dire that, during the siege, RSF troops reportedly targeted community kitchens with drone strikes, forcing desperate residents to eat animal feed and even animal hides. The IPC also warned that three towns—Tawila, Mellit, and Tawisha—where refugees from El Fasher have fled, are at risk of famine as well.
Sudan, according to the latest data, is now the site of the world’s largest food crisis, with more than 21 million people facing acute food insecurity. This catastrophe has been compounded by a dramatic fall-off in international aid: only 28 percent of Sudan’s $4.16 billion humanitarian plan has been funded in 2025, a shortfall attributed to a decline in donor government spending. David Miliband, head of the International Rescue Committee, wrote in Time magazine that “El Fasher is not just a humanitarian emergency. It is the face of the broader collapse of international diplomacy in the post-WWII era.”
Efforts to halt the conflict are hampered by ongoing arms supplies to both sides. The RSF, led by Hemedti—who was sanctioned in September 2023 for war crimes and human rights abuses—has reportedly received funding from the United Arab Emirates. British military equipment, intended for the UAE, was recently found in RSF hands, prompting international controversy. The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), under the leadership of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, remain locked in a bitter struggle with the RSF, each side blaming the other for the war’s escalation and atrocities.
Sudan’s descent into chaos is rooted in its turbulent history. The country has endured decades of coups, two civil wars, and the Darfur genocide, which led to International Criminal Court indictments for crimes against humanity. After the ouster of long-serving President Omar al-Bashir in 2019, hopes for a stable, civilian-led government were dashed by a 2021 coup. The current conflict erupted in April 2023, when disputes between Burhan and Hemedti over the integration of the RSF into Sudan’s armed forces ignited open warfare. Since then, more than 150,000 people have been killed and over 12 million displaced, according to The Independent and Foreign Policy.
The international community’s response has been, at best, anemic. Despite urgent pleas from the United Nations and humanitarian organizations, diplomatic efforts have stalled, and outside parties continue to supply weapons to the warring factions. Foreign aid has dried up, and donor fatigue has set in. As Guterres stated, “People are dying of malnutrition, disease, and violence. And we are hearing continued reports of violations of international humanitarian law and human rights.”
For the people of El Fasher—and Sudan at large—the future remains deeply uncertain. With famine spreading, violence unchecked, and the world’s attention elsewhere, the suffering continues unabated. The fall of El Fasher is not just another grim milestone; it’s a stark reminder of the urgent need for a cease-fire, meaningful diplomacy, and humanitarian action before Sudan’s tragedy grows even darker.