Weekly Policy Statement August 11th – Darfur Women Action Group

August 11-15, 2025

Mass Murder, Siege, and Collapse: Sudan’s Crisis Reaches Breaking Point

This past week, Sudan witnessed an escalation of atrocities, a tightening of deadly sieges, and a total collapse of essential services. Additionally, the humanitarian situation in South and West Kordofan has reached unprecedented levels of deterioration due to the tight blockade, ongoing attacks, and spread of disease. Agriculture has completely halted, and the siege has paralyzed food, medicine, and fuel supplies, causing shortages and soaring prices. The health sector has completely collapsed and restrictions on humanitarian organizations make it impossible to receive aid. People are dying not only from violence, but from starvation, preventable disease, and the deliberate denial of help.

Recent Escalations

On Monday, August 11th, the RSF launched an attack on the Abu Shouk displacement camp, near El Fasher, killing at least 40 people and injuring 19. The RSF raided the camp, targeting people in their homes and committed summary executions during the attacks. This attack has continued into the week, with the death toll rising to 57. This unimaginable horror must end. Routes in and out of El Fasher remain closed, trapping people in the city, a deliberate act of violence against citizens. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, also warned of the risk of a rise in ethnically motivated abuses as RSF continues its siege of the city. These attacks are clear violations of international humanitarian law.

On August 13th, an RSF drone strike in Al-Jazeera State killed 5 people and injured 10, including 3 children, when a drone hit a school. This reckless targeting of civilian infrastructure is unacceptable.

The death toll of the SAF drone attack on Kutum Market in North Darfur on August 3 has risen to 7. On impact, the attack killed 5 people and injured more than 10, with 2 more victims being claimed this past week. Among the victims were three young men with disabilities.

Public Health Emergency

Sudan’s health crisis continues to spiral. A severe heat wave in the Red Sea state caused 178 cases of heatstroke, and 28 deaths. Meanwhile, in Darfur, cholera continues to spread and as of Wednesday evening, August 13th, total cases are over 5,886, including 257 deaths. In South Darfur state alone, there were 117 new cases and 12 new deaths in the past week. The collapse of the health system, combined with heat, flooding, and war, is accelerating this epidemic.

Threats to Free Press & Free Speech

Since the outbreak of the war, over 20 newspapers and all printing presses in Sudan have shut down, creating an information blackout. The Khartoum state government is preparing to restart newspaper printing, but publishers warn that government funding could compromise press independence, turning outlets into propaganda tools. This revival of printing could be tightly controlled, and many warn of state-controlled propaganda.

On August 10th, it was confirmed that activist Khaled Al-Zubair was assassinated by the SAF inside a military detention center after being held for 21 months, a politically and racially motivated killing. Around the same time, Obada, a conscript in the Sudanese army and member of the Resistance Committees, was arrested for publicly criticizing a death sentence activists say was based on fabricated charges. These incidents occur amid heightened repression in Khartoum, where activists face killings, prolonged detentions, and arrests for political speech. This is a wave of oppression, creating a climate of fear, silencing dissent, and eroding the principles of justice and free expression.

Our Demands

We urgently call on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), the African Union, the United States, and the broader international community to take the following urgent actions:

Authorize urgent and unimpeded access to humanitarian aid for all in need across Sudan;
Swiftly authorize and deploy civilian protection forces to protect the innocent Sudanese people, particularly in Darfur;
Press the warring parties to stop the torture, murder, rape, and starvation of civilians in Darfur and across the Sudan;
Press the warring parties to immediately cease all attacks and strictly adhere to a permanent, verifiable ceasefire;
Impose criminal and financial accountability for all individuals and states complicit in committing past and present genocide and war crimes in Sudan;
U.S., UNSC, and allies must hold the regional and international enablers supplying weapons to the warring parties in Sudan accountable;
US and allies must cease the selling of arms to the UAE and prevent genocide in Sudan.
We call on the United States to issue a waiver for Sudanese refugees, students to enter into the US without restriction

As attacks on civilians and the humanitarian crisis intensifies we must speak out and demand action. We further call on DWAG supporters to speak up and tell our leaders- in the face of genocide and the incredible suffering they must not look the other way, they must meet their moral and legal obligation by standing against genocide in Sudan. The time to act is now.

Please join our Stand with Sudan campaign to take action, support the life saving effort and rally others to be a voice for the people of Sudan.

With our collective effort we can ease the suffering, compel our leaders to act and hold those responsible accountable.

With Gratitude,

Niemat Ahmadi,

DWAG President