CRIMES against humanity were carried out by paramilitary forces and their allied militia in western Darfur, according to a damning new report by United Nations experts.

The report to the UN security council paints a horrifying picture of the brutality of the Arab-dominated Rapid Support Forces (RSF) against Africans in Darfur. 

It also details how the RSF succeeded in gaining control of four out of Darfur’s five states, including through complex financial networks that involve dozens of companies.

Sudan plunged into chaos in April, when long-simmering tensions between its military, led by General Abdel Fattah Burhan, and the RSF paramilitary commanded by Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, broke out into street battles in the capital, Khartoum.

Fighting spread to other parts of the country, but in Sudan’s Darfur region it took on a different form with brutal attacks by the RSF on African civilians, especially the ethnic Masalit.

Two decades ago, the people of Darfur, particularly those of central or east African descent, were the victims of genocide and war crimes, particularly by the notorious Janjaweed Arab militias. 

The panel of experts said Darfur is experiencing “its worst violence since 2005.”

The ongoing conflict has caused a large-scale humanitarian crisis and displaced approximately 6.8 million people, the experts said.

The RSF and rival Sudanese government forces have both used heavy artillery and shelling in highly populated areas, causing widespread destruction of critical water, sanitation, education and healthcare facilities.

In their 47-page report, the experts said that the RSF and its militias targeted sites in Darfur where displaced people had found shelter, civilian neighbourhoods and medical facilities.

According to intelligence sources, the panel said, in just one city, Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state near the Chad border, between 10,000 and 15,000 people were killed.

The experts said that sexual violence by the RSF and its allied militia was widespread.

The panel said that, according to reliable sources from Geneina, women and girls as young as 14 years old were raped by RSF elements in a UN World Food Programme storage facility that the paramilitary force controlled, in their homes, or when returning home to collect belongings after being displaced by the violence. 

The experts said prominent Masalit community members were singled out by the RSF, which had a list, and the group's leaders were harassed and some executed.

The panel said that disproportionate and indiscriminate attacks on civilians constitute war crimes under the 1949 Geneva conventions.