© OCHA/J. Clark Fear, stigma and a lack of safe reporting mechanisms lead to a massive cover-up of crimes in Sudan. UN: Sexual violence in Sudan is widespread and systematic Peace and Security
A new report by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) reveals the scale and severity of sexual violence surrounding the conflict in Sudan. According to the report’s authors, sexual violence has become an integral part of the strategy to intimidate civilians and is used as a tool of war.
The report finds that the spread of sexual violence follows the expansion of the geography of hostilities and the displacement of civilians. The UN warns that unless these crimes are investigated and victims heard and supported, the prospects for peace and social reconciliation in Sudan will be jeopardized for years to come.
Sexual violence as a weapon of war
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk reiterated that such acts are military crimes, and, when systematic, crimes against humanity.
“As I warned back in January, sexual violence is being used as a weapon of war, and this is a war crime,” Turk said.
According to the report, there are reasonable grounds to believe that some of the crimes in the Darfur region may indeed amount to crimes against humanity.
Scale of violence: hundreds of known incidents, thousands hidden
From April 2023 to mid-April 2026, OHCHR confirmed 546 cases of sexual violence affecting 838 people. Among them were 539 women, 284 girls, eight men and seven boys.
The UN stresses that the real numbers are much higher: fear, stigma and the lack of safe reporting mechanisms lead to a massive cover-up of crimes.
Most of the attacks, according to the report, were carried out by men in the Rapid Action Force uniform, their allies and militias. However, responsibility is also placed on the Sudanese Armed Forces and other groups.
Forms of Violence
The document documents a wide range of crimes: rape and gang rape, sexual slavery, forced marriage, sexual torture, and trafficking in persons for the purpose of sexual operation.
Almost a quarter of all confirmed cases are gang rapes. One attack involved at least ten perpetrators who raped a minor girl.
The UN documented at least 85 women and girls held in sexual slavery, who were also forced into domestic labor and forced to work to earn money for the militants.
Death, pregnancy, absence medical aid
At least 13 people, including children, died as a result of sexual violence. The youngest victim was only nine years old.
The lack of functioning health facilities exacerbates the consequences: at least 59 women and girls became pregnant after being raped.
The report documents numerous cases of ethnically motivated violence, especially against the Masalit people in Western Darfur. Victims reported that their attackers asked about their tribal affiliation before raping them.
The need to fight impunity
Volker Türk called for urgent, independent and impartial investigations into all cases of sexual violence.
“Impunity increases suffering and fuels the cycle of violations,” the High Commissioner stressed.
The UN requires parties to conflict to take concrete action to prevent sexual violence, and the international community to ensure that justice and accountability remain at the core of efforts to end war.