Sudan's RSF accused of detaining 178 in Darfur, forcing civilians to fight or pay ransom
RSF's crackdown follows the group's recent announcement of a general mobilisation to enlist new fighters, with threats of punishment for anyone who resists.
Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have allegedly detained 178 people, including a medical worker, in East Darfur State, giving them the ultimatum to either join the group or pay a ransom to secure their freedom.
This is according to the Sudan Doctors Network, which reported on Wednesday that RSF personnel arrested the detainees in the city of El Daien as part of a campaign to forcibly recruit civilians and compel them to join them.
RSF's crackdown follows the group's recent announcement of a general mobilisation to enlist new fighters, with threats of punishment for anyone who resists.
"Rapid Support forces arrest 178 people, including medical personnel, in El Daein, forcing them to choose between fighting or paying a ransom," said the Sudan Doctors network in a statement on X.
The Network also faulted RSF for committing repeated abuses in areas under their control, including forcing civilians into combat.
The network cited the case of nurse Hamdan Abdallah Musa, whose family was told to pay a ransom or he would be made to fight.
The Doctors Network subsequently urged the international community to intervene, describing the acts as serious violations of international law and fundamental human rights.
Elsewhere in North Darfur, activists warned on Wednesday that living conditions in the city are rapidly deteriorating as essential goods disappear from markets, putting thousands of trapped residents at risk of starvation.
According to the El Fasher Resistance Committees Coordination, the ongoing siege by RSF since April 2024 has caused severe shortages of food and medicine, raising fears of widespread famine and disease in the region.
"The city's markets have become empty, resembling closed warehouses more than hubs of life. Shelves are bare, essential goods are vanishing before citizens' eyes, and prices are skyrocketing without limit," the coordination said in a statement.
It added that some traders have abandoned the markets, while others hoard supplies to drive prices even higher.
"The city's markets have few remaining goods, sold at unimaginable prices due to supply disruptions from the siege," the Coordination said.
Sudan has recorded the highest number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) ever documented in a single country, with 11.6 million people forced to flee their homes in 2024 amid a worsening civil war between RSF and the Sudanese Army.
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