Sudanese Government Accuses RSF of Killing 300 Civilians in Al-Nahud

The Sudanese Foreign Ministry has accused the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of committing a massacre in the city of Al-Nahud, West Kordofan State, alleging that 300 civilians were killed during recent clashes.

In a statement released on Saturday, May 4, 2025, the ministry condemned the killings as an act of ethnic violence, describing it as part of a wider pattern of crimes against humanity allegedly carried out by the RSF across various regions of the country.

“This militia has committed a new heinous massacre against civilians in Al-Nahud on an ethnic basis. The number of victims has reached approximately 300,” the statement said. It also called on the United Nations Security Council and global actors to abandon what it described as a “lenient” stance towards the RSF.

The RSF has not yet responded to the government’s claims but confirmed on Friday that its fighters had taken full control of Al-Nahud and seized the headquarters of the Sudanese Army’s 18th Infantry Brigade in the city. A day later, the group claimed to have also captured El-Khuwei, another town in West Kordofan.

Al-Nahud had served as the army’s temporary administrative capital for West Kordofan since July 2024, after RSF forces overran El-Fula, the region’s original capital.

The ongoing conflict, which erupted on April 15, 2023, between the RSF and Sudanese Armed Forces, has plunged the country into a deep humanitarian crisis. United Nations and local authorities estimate more than 20,000 people have been killed and 15 million displaced. Independent U.S.-based researchers place the death toll significantly higher—at around 130,000.

As the war enters its 21st month, calls are mounting for international intervention to address the mounting civilian toll and alleged atrocities.