The UN human rights chief has said he is "extremely worried" that a repeat of atrocities in Al Fasher, which fell under the control of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in late October, might be seen in Sudan's Kordofan.
"From Darfur and the Kordofans to Khartoum and Omdurman and beyond, no Sudanese civilian has been left untouched by the cruel and senseless violence," Volker Turk told reporters in Geneva on Wednesday.
"I am extremely worried that we might see in Kordofan a repeat of the atrocities that have been committed in Al Fasher."
Responding to a question regarding Al Fasher, he said: "We are talking about very serious atrocity crimes, war crimes for sure, potentially also crimes against humanity."
He stressed that there is an ethnically motivated violence that has come into play.
Massacres
The three Kordofan states – North, West, and South – have seen weeks of fierce fighting between the army and the RSF, prompting tens of thousands of people to flee.
Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five states of the Darfur region in the west, except for some northern parts of North Darfur that remain under army control.
The army, in turn, holds most areas of the remaining 13 states in the south, north, east, and centre, including the capital Khartoum.
The conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has killed thousands of people and displaced millions of others.
The RSF is accused of committing massacres, torture, and summary executions in Al Fasher.
