Militia kidnaps healthcare workers in Sudan – doctors’ union
Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is demanding a $1 million ransom for the release of six healthcare workers abducted in the city of Al-Fashir, the Sudan Doctors’ Network (SDN) reported on Facebook on Tuesday.
The hostages – identified as four doctors, a pharmacist, and a nurse – had been treating the wounded during the prolonged siege of Al-Fashir before being captured by the RSF and allied forces, the SDN reported.
In its statement, the SDN said that RSF units were demanding 100 million Sudanese pounds (around $167,000) for each doctor as a condition for their release. The organization declared that the RSF bore full responsibility for the lives and safety of the abducted personnel.
“We affirm that this is an organized criminal act aimed at destroying what remains of the healthcare system in Darfur and intimidating humanitarian workers,” the SDN stated.
Human rights activists have since called on the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international humanitarian bodies to intervene urgently to secure the safe return of the medics. “Targeting doctors is a crime that cannot be tolerated,” the SDN stressed.
The incident occurred in the aftermath of the RSF’s announcement on Sunday claiming full control of Al-Fashir, the capital of North Darfur Province. A militia spokesperson also said that the group had taken complete control of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) Sixth Infantry Division command.
Sudan descended into chaos in April 2023 when fighting erupted between the national army (Sudanese Armed Forces, SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). This occurred after months of tension between their commanders, army generals Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo ‘Hemedti’, respectively, over a planned transition to civilian rule. What began in the capital, Khartoum, as a power struggle has devastated the country, killing tens of thousands and displacing millions.
Regional and international peace efforts, including African Union mediation and Saudi–US talks in Jeddah, have repeatedly stalled. Sudanese officials have named Colombians and Ukrainians among mercenaries backing the RSF against the army. Officials have also accused Ukraine and the United Arab Emirates of involvement and recently claimed the European Union has an “incomplete understanding of the complex situation” in the country.
Khartoum has also accused authorities in neighboring Kenya of backing the RSF and has broken ties with the East African grouping IGAD amid mistrust of regional mediation. In July, TASIS, a political coalition aligned with the paramilitary, announced the formation of a rival government months after its members signed a charter in Nairobi. It named Gen. Dagalo as chairman of a 15-member presidential council, a move rejected by the UN and AU.
The following day, Darfur Governor Minni Arko Minnawi confirmed the city’s fall and issued a statement on social media platform X. While acknowledging the collapse of the local government, he warned against allowing the future of Darfur to be dictated by “violent groups” or “agents of corruption.” He called for the protection of civilians, clarity on the status of the displaced, and the launch of an independent inquiry into alleged atrocities committed by RSF militias.
“Every inch will return to its rightful owners,” Minawi declared.
