Foreign fighters and external support fuel Sudan’s war: UN-backed probe

Foreign recruitment and external support networks are sustaining and expanding the civil war in Sudan by providing weapons, military technology and fighters, to the detriment of civilians, according to a United Nations-backed investigation.

A report by the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for the Sudan, released on Thursday, said transnational entities operating across several countries recruited, trained and deployed foreign personnel to support the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The report also said there were “reasonable grounds to believe” that the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) used foreign-supplied drones in its operations that harmed civilians and civilian infrastructure.

Since April 2023, the conflict between the SAF and the RSF has killed tens of thousands of Sudanese and forced millions to flee their homes.

“This support fed into RSF operations in Zamzam camp and later during the takeover of el-Fasher, where the [UN] Mission documented grave human rights and international humanitarian law violations and international crimes, including conduct displaying hallmarks of genocide,” mission member Mona Rishmawi said.

The report said external entities have substantially enhanced the drone capabilities of both the RSF and the SAF, enabling them to strike far beyond front lines.

Documented drone attacks included RSF strikes in Kalogi, South Kordofan that killed 114 people, and army strikes in Ad-Da’ein, East Darfur, which killed at least 70 people and destroyed a major hospital.

Repeated RSF drone strikes in el-Obeid, North Kordofan, especially between July and August this year, may “constitute serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, and may amount to war crimes”, the report said.