USA Research School: Rapid Support Forces Commit Massacres in El Fasher
02 November, 2025
A prominent American research institute has confirmed that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militias have committed massacres and mass killings amounting to ethnic cleansing since entering El Fasher. Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee asserts that it is time to designate the RSF as a “terrorist organization,” stating that its presence unermines US national security.
Senator Jim Risch, a Republican from Idaho and Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, tweeted Tuesday evening that the atrocities witnessed in El Fasher, Darfur, were not accidental; they were part of the RSF’s plan from the beginning. He added that the RSF has perpetrated acts of terrorism and unspeakable atrocities, including genocide, against the Sudanese people.
He said the “Rapid Support Forces (RSF) should be called what they truly are: a foreign terrorist organization, and officially designated as such. America is not safer, more secure, or more prosperous with the RSF slaughtering thousands.”
The US senator’s statement echoed a report from the Yale School of Public Health’s Humanities Research Laboratory, which indicated that physical evidence and investigative findings confirmed that the RSF militia committed mass killings after seizing control of El Fasher, North Darfur. This was based on an analysis of satellite imagery collected on October 27, 2025.
The report, published on the university’s official website, confirms that this evidence was obtained after the militia’s takeover of the city and proves that the RSF committed mass killings. The report stated that the Yale Human Rights Research Lab observed Rapid Support Forces (RSF) vehicles deployed in tactical formations consistent with house-to-house clearing operations in the First Class neighborhood, where civilians had been confirmed to have sought refuge until last week. These activities include blocking side streets with vehicles and the presence of vehicles equipped with machine guns. Image analysis shows objects matching the size of human bodies on the ground near RSF vehicles, including at least five instances of the ground turning red.
The report from the research lab, considered a reliable source for Western and American intelligence agencies and media outlets, indicated that “the house-to-house clearing operations are taking place approximately 250 meters from the Al-Safiya Mosque—which was attacked by the RSF in a drone strike on September 19, 2025, resulting in the deaths of approximately 78 people—and slightly northwest of the Saudi Hospital.”
The report also stated that the Yale Human Rights team observed objects matching the size of bodies near the earthen berm walls surrounding El Fasher following the militia's attack on the city. These observations are consistent with reports of executions near the earthen berm and the killing of people attempting to flee the city across it.
“These objects are consistent with the size range of adult human bodies and are not present in previous images,” it added. The report further stated that the Yale Human Rights Lab had monitored multiple credible reports of mass killings in El Fasher through social media and open-source information, and that there were multiple reports of civilians dying while fleeing El Fasher, including from wounds inflicted by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia.
The lab presented satellite and thermal imagery and compared it with previous images of the same location to confirm that civilians attempting to flee to displacement camps were killed by the militia, which surrounds the city.
Large clusters of objects consistent with human remains were seen south of El Fasher on Route B-26 leading to the RSF-controlled Zamzam camp, formerly one of the largest IDP camps in Sudan. This area is entirely under the control of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and has been used as an operational base.
The Yale Human Rights Lab also observed groups of people west of El Fasher moving towards the earthen berm surrounding the city. The RSF controls all major Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) military installations.
Finally, the Yale Lab confirms that the RSF controls the headquarters of the SAF's 6th Division, based on the presence of vehicles matching those used by the RSF and verification of this information using publicly available vehicles. Satellite imagery taken on September 26, 2025, shows extensive damage to the headquarters of the Sudanese Armed Forces' 6th Division. Additional vehicles matching those used by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are visible in satellite imagery taken on September 27, 2025.
The report states, “The Rapid Support Forces militia appears to have deployed main battle tanks (MBTs) identical to the T-55 in areas under their control. Two vehicles with turrets, one approximately 6.2 meters long and 3.7 meters wide, reaching 9 meters in length with its turret, are consistent with the T-55. Another similar vehicle, approximately 6.3 meters long and 3 meters wide, with its turret reaching 7.6 meters in length, is visible in satellite imagery taken on October 27, 2025, near the artillery brigade. The Yale Humanitarian Research Laboratory confirms the RSF's control of civilian facilities based on the absence of Sudanese Armed Forces vehicles and identifies damage to the former Sudanese Armed Forces artillery base” Satellite images taken on October 27, 2025.
“It appears that El Fasher is witnessing a systematic and deliberate ethnic cleansing of the indigenous non-Arab Fur, Zaghawa, and Berti communities through forced displacement and summary executions.”
The report stated that the world must act immediately to exert maximum pressure on the Rapid Support Forces militia and its backers, particularly the United Arab Emirates, to end the killings now.
The actions of the Rapid Support Forces militia, as detailed in this report, may constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity, and could even amount to genocide.
The university noted that the Yale Center for Human Rights issued more than one report every 10 days throughout the siege of El Fasher, meticulously documenting the events and actions that led to the current catastrophe. While the world may claim it was unable to stop the siege, it cannot reasonably claim ignorance.
It is worth noting that the Yale Human Resources Lab uses data fusion methodologies to analyze open-source and remote sensing data. The Yale Human Resources Lab produced this report by cross-referencing open-source data, including social media data, local news reports, multimedia, and other reports, with remote sensing data, including satellite imagery and thermal sensor data.
Researchers analyzed open-source data from social media, news reports, and other publicly available sources to identify, time- and geographic locations of the incidents, and verify their accuracy. Researchers and analysts say they assess the credibility and reliability of open-source data based on the source's level of detail, its prior credibility, and corroboration by other independent sources.
Remote sensing and satellite imagery analysis relies on multi-time change detection, which involves comparing two or more satellite images of the same area, taken at different times, to detect variations in color, optical characteristics, the presence or absence of objects, or changes in their position across the images. Coordinates were provided for each location to facilitate the temporal and geographic identification of potential evidence, including videos, photographs, audio recordings, and eyewitness accounts.
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