El Fasher, November 23 (Darfur24)
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) allegedly compelled residents of villages northwest of El Fasher to collect and bury hundreds of bodies lying along the roads between the city and the village of Qarni, in what observers fear is an attempt to conceal evidence of widespread violations against civilians, sources told Darfur24 on Friday.
International monitoring organizations, using satellite imagery, reported that the RSF had gathered hundreds of bodies from the streets and neighborhoods of El Fasher, while others were completely burned. They said the actions are efforts to erase traces of recent civilian killings.
According to witnesses, the RSF instructed local administrations in Qarni, Hallat Arbab, Um Jadwal, and the Wana area to mobilize residents to bury civilians who were killed while attempting to flee El Fasher after delivering aid to the displaced.
Those who took part in the burial operations claimed the areas around Qarni witnessed, between November 9 and 11, one of the largest mass burials of victims killed while escaping the city.
The witnesses stated that the process took place under the direct supervision of RSF commander Mudathir Abdullah Bahya, responsible for the Qarni gate and originally from Damra Qallab in the Kulqi area.
They estimated that at least 2,000 bodies were buried in scattered mass graves, while RSF heavy machinery, including front loaders, was used to bury additional numbers.
A source close to the RSF told Darfur24 that some bodies collected from inside El Fasher were burned before being buried at various locations, including inside an olive press in the Al Salam neighborhood and near a station south of Jisr Al Janan School.