Sudan’s conflict-driven crisis sharply escalated in the first half of the year, with a dramatic rise in civilian deaths, summary executions, and ethnic violence, according to a new report from the U.N. Human Rights Office.
The report, released Thursday, says at least 3,384 civilians were killed between Jan. 1 and June 30, primarily in Darfur, followed by Kordofan and Khartoum. That figure represents nearly 80% of all civilian deaths documented in 2024 so far, though the actual toll is believed to be significantly higher.
About 70% of those casualties — more than 2,300 people — occurred as Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continued heavy fighting in densely populated areas, using artillery, drones, and airstrikes.
In one of the deadliest incidents, RSF offensives in April on El Fasher and nearby areas in North Darfur killed at least 527 people, including more than 270 in the Zamzam and Abu Shouk displacement camps, the report says. In March, airstrikes by SAF on Tora market in North Darfur reportedly killed at least 350 civilians, including 13 members of a single family.
The U.N. also documented the unlawful killing of at least 990 civilians outside active hostilities, including through summary executions. Between February and April, such killings tripled, driven largely by reprisals in Khartoum after SAF and allied fighters retook areas from RSF control in late March.
One witness told U.N. investigators that he saw children as young as 14 or 15 being summarily executed by SAF forces in East Nile, Khartoum.
The report also cites video evidence showing RSF fighters executing at least 30 men and boys in civilian clothing in Al Salha, Omdurman, on April 27. The victims had been accused of links to the military.
It also details widespread sexual violence used as a weapon of war, arbitrary detentions, ethnic profiling, and attacks on civil society figures, including humanitarian volunteers and journalists. At least seven media workers were reportedly killed in the first half of the year.
U.N. Human Rights Chief Volker Türk said the findings reveal a deepening protection crisis in Sudan, calling for urgent international action.
“Sudan’s conflict is a forgotten one, and I hope that my Office’s report puts the spotlight on this disastrous situation where atrocity crimes, including war crimes, are being committed,” Türk said.
The U.N. warns that Sudan is now facing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. An estimated 24.6 million people face acute food insecurity, 19 million lack access to safe water and sanitation, and a cholera outbreak continues to spread. At least 30 humanitarian and health workers were killed during the reporting period, some in targeted attacks.
Türk urged the international community to act swiftly.
“Many more lives will be lost without urgent action to protect civilians and without the rapid and unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid,” he said.