United Nations Vows Accountability for Mass Killings in Sudan

Fri Nov 14 2025 21:34:07 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

In a recent move, the UN human rights council has launched an independent investigation into mass killings in el-Fasher, Sudan, pledging to hold the responsible parties accountable for their actions.

The UN has unanimously endorsed a fresh investigation into mass killings reported in el-Fasher, Sudan, highlighting the ongoing humanitarian crisis following the civil war. More than 150,000 casualties and millions displaced underline the desperate situation as the UN seeks to identify perpetrators and ensure justice. Concerns mount over international complicity and the inability of the UN to effectively fund the inquiry amid ongoing violence.

The UN human rights council has given unanimous backing to a fresh, independent investigation into mass killings reported in the Sudanese city of el-Fasher.

Our wake-up calls were not heeded. Bloodstains on the ground in el-Fasher have been photographed from space. The stain on the record of the international community is less visible, but no less damaging, UN human rights chief Volker Türk said at an emergency meeting in Geneva on Friday.

Since the civil war began over two years ago, more than 150,000 people have been killed and about 12 million have been forced from their homes.

The new investigation is mandated to identify those who ordered and carried out the massacre in el-Fasher. The findings could be shared with the International Criminal Court.

While Türk did warn individuals and companies fuelling and profiting from Sudan's war, there is disappointment that the mandate makes no mention of other countries sponsoring the conflict. The UAE is accused of shipping weapons to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group, while Iran has been accused of supplying some weapons to the Sudanese army.

Concern lingers about the UN's capacity to fund a credible inquiry amid ongoing violence. El-Fasher, recently captured by the RSF, was the last city in Darfur held by the army and its allies.

The RSF has been accused of targeting non-Arab groups, a claim it denies. Graphic evidence of atrocities has circulated online, and digital evidence is expected to play a key role in the investigation.

Mona Rishmawi from the UN's fact-finding mission says the scale of suffering today is greater than the Janjaweed militia's genocide in the same region two decades ago.

On Wednesday, Marco Rubio from the Trump administration urged direct action to halt arms supplies to the RSF. The United States, along with the UAE, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, advocates for a three-month humanitarian truce in the region.

Despite strong allegations against the UAE regarding arms supply and accusations against the Sudanese army for atrocities, fighting continues unabated, leaving many citizens trapped in a dire situation.