Satellite Evidence Reveals Mass Killings and Displacement in Sudan's El-Fasher Captured by RSF Forces

Satellite imagery reveals devastating evidence of mass killings and widespread displacement in Sudan, where violence is now visible from space.

New Delhi:

The catastrophic bloodshed in Sudan has reached such proportions that it can be observed from orbit. Recent satellite imagery analyzed by Yale School of Public Health's Humanitarian Research Lab (HRL) documents rebel forces conducting systematic killings following their capture of El-Fasher last week.

Sudan has been engulfed in a devastating civil conflict for over two years. The hostilities between the Sudanese Army and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) erupted in April 2023, when these formerly allied units clashed over integration plans during the country's attempted democratic transition.

On October 26, RSF announced the seizure of army headquarters in El-Fasher, North Darfur. This city represented the army's final stronghold in the Darfur region.

According to United Nations estimates, the ongoing war has resulted in approximately 40,000 fatalities and displaced 12 million people.

The fighting has created millions of refugees, pushed half of Sudan into food insecurity, and facilitated the spread of disease throughout the nation.

In a report released Monday, Yale HRL identified RSF vehicles arranged in tactical formations consistent with house-to-house clearing operations in El-Fasher's Daraja Oula neighborhood, an area where civilians had sought safety as recently as last week.

"Imagery analysis shows objects consistent with the size of human bodies on the ground near RSF vehicles, including at least five instances of reddish earth discoloration," states the report.

"House-to-house clearance operations are approximately 250 meters from Al Safiya mosque - which the RSF attacked in a drone strike on 19 September 2025 that killed approximately 78 people - and slightly northwest of the Saudi Hospital," the document continues.

Through credible information sources, Yale HRL also confirmed reports of civilians perishing while attempting to flee El-Fasher.

The HRL report indicates that groups of people can be seen departing El-Fasher southward toward RSF-controlled Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps and westward toward Tawilah.

"Large groups of objects consistent with people are visible south of El-Fasher on the B26 road to RSF-controlled Zamzam, formerly one of the largest IDP camps in Sudan. This area is totally under RSF control and has been used as a base of operations for RSF," the Yale report explains.

The final section of the Yale report confirms RSF's takeover of the Sixth Division of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).

Satellite imagery reveals extensive damage at the Sixth Division headquarters, with additional RSF-consistent vehicles present at the location.