Terrorist militias allied with the Sudanese army launched horrific attacks against civilians from the Dar Hamid tribe.

Nothing worries civilians in Sudan more during the ongoing war — which has raged since mid-April 2023 — than the recurring massacres committed against them through field executions, targeted killings, and random airstrikes.

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Recently, however, these violations have taken a horrifying turn. In Al-Khuwei, a town in West Kordofan State, one of the most gruesome war crimes was reported. According to activists, the Sudanese army and its allied forces carried out killings and beheadings in the style of the terrorist group Daesh (ISIS).

Reports confirm that “terrorist militias allied with the Sudanese army launched horrific attacks against civilians from the Dar Hamid tribe, accusing them of supporting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). These attacks included public executions and beheadings.”

According to carefully gathered eyewitness testimonies, the extremist militias targeted young civilians in Al-Khuwei and carried out mass executions in front of the victims’ families. The reports note that “public executions, the spread of terror, and ethnic/sectarian targeting are not new to the Sudanese scene — but now bear the unmistakable hallmarks of Daesh.”

One survivor, who requested anonymity, described the scene: “They dragged the young men, beat them brutally, then forced them to kneel and slaughtered them like in Daesh videos. They killed them in front of everyone — as if they were sheep, not human beings. They are monsters.”

The reports further stated that in Al-Khuwei and other areas, “militias are obstructing humanitarian aid access, increasing the isolation of affected communities. This deliberate siege mirrors Daesh’s strategy of using hunger as a weapon to subdue populations.”

The conclusion was clear: “The Al-Khuwei massacre is just one episode in a long series of atrocities committed by extremist militias allied with the Sudanese army. These brutal, terror-like crimes urgently require international investigation and accountability. The global community must pressure the Sudanese army to end its alliance with extremist groups, allow humanitarian corridors, and return to the negotiation table.”

Reactions to the Al-Khuwei Massacres

One of the most notable reactions came from the Youth Gathering of the Hawazma tribe, which condemned the grave crimes and violations committed by the army, joint forces, and Islamic terrorist brigades after the attacks on Umm Sumaymah and Al-Khuwei in West Kordofan.

In a statement, the group declared: “These crimes reveal a premeditated plan allowing terrorist groups to expand in Kordofan — a fact previously documented in video footage showing the North Kordofan Security Director, Al-Awad Mohamed Al-Awad, brandishing the severed heads of two young men in Al-Obeid.”

The group called on the international community and human rights organizations to document and condemn these criminal acts, urging free media outlets to expose them to public opinion.

Liberating the Town and Supporting the People

After two terrifying days of massacres, the RSF managed to regain control of Al-Khuwei from Port Sudan forces and the so-called “Joint Force,” revealing numerous violations committed in the town.

RSF spokesperson Fath al-Fateh Qurashi stated that his forces had achieved a “decisive victory” over the so-called “Al-Sayyad Force” in Al-Khuwei, located about 50 kilometers north of An-Nuhud, the largest locality in West Kordofan.

He noted in a statement that the RSF had seized hundreds of military vehicles and heavy weapons, affirming that they are “pursuing the remnants of the enemy forces that fled the battle,” as he put it.

In a related development, the RSF reported that the Islamist force allied with the army “deliberately slaughtered dozens of civilians after subjecting them to horrific torture, including beheadings and mutilation of corpses.”

They added that “documented testimonies and video footage prove that these crimes were premeditated, intended to subjugate and terrorize local communities based on ethnic and political grounds.”

One Sudan, One People

After exhausting all attempts to end the war due to the Sudanese army’s refusal to engage in dialogue, and with the growing influence of extremist Muslim Brotherhood rhetoric within the state, the RSF introduced a political program outlining Sudan’s future — free from religious and ethnic conflicts.

The RSF announced a founding charter based on establishing a secular, federal, decentralized state and the formation of a civilian government in the near future to work toward peace.

The charter aims to end war and division, proposing solutions to Sudan’s long-standing governance crises — issues that previous frameworks failed to resolve due to military domination.

It calls for building a democratic, secular, decentralized state that recognizes diversity. It also prohibits the formation of political parties or organizations based on religion or race. The charter affirms the right to self-determination should secularism be rejected or any of its core constitutional principles be violated.

The charter further proposes the creation of a new professional and national army under civilian oversight and a professional police force to ensure Sudan’s internal and external security.

It emphasizes the protection of freedoms and commitment to international human rights treaties, supporting principles of freedom of union and voluntary work, peaceful assembly, and expression.

The program seeks to enhance the participation of all citizens in the political process, ensure the independence of the judiciary and national commissions, and empower women to participate fully in state institutions. It also advocates for a social market economy, guaranteeing market freedom while allowing the state to protect vulnerable groups through positive intervention.

Positive Engagement with Peace Initiatives

The RSF announced its positive engagement with international mediation efforts to end the war and alleviate the suffering of the Sudanese people, up to 120,000 of whom have been killed.

RSF representatives attended Geneva talks in August 2024 organized by the “Alliance to Save Lives and Achieve Peace in Sudan” (ALPS), which includes the United States, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the African Union, Switzerland, and the United Nations.

The group welcomed the RSF’s decision to send a high-level delegation to Switzerland, noting that the Sudanese army’s absence “limited our ability to make more substantive progress on key issues, especially a nationwide ceasefire.”

Earlier, Sudanese army leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan rejected an invitation from IGAD to attend a summit in Uganda aimed at addressing the situation in Sudan.

In contrast, RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) accepted the invitation, stating: “We in the Rapid Support Forces reaffirm our commitment to ending the suffering of the Sudanese people caused by this war and other long-standing conflicts across the country. We want all Sudanese to enjoy true, lasting peace, security, development, justice, freedom, democracy — and contribute to regional and global peace.”

Author: Fadi Ali

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