KHARTOUM — The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied militias are detaining civilians and demanding ransoms from families unable to flee the Sudanese city of al-Fashir, with those unable to pay facing killings or severe assaults, according to testimonies gathered by Reuters from former captives, aid workers, and researchers.

The accounts, drawn from interviews with 33 survivors and 10 humanitarian personnel, indicate that large groups of civilians are being held in multiple villages within roughly 80 km of al-Fashir, North Darfur’s capital, which fell to RSF control in late October after an 18-month siege.

Some detainees reported being taken back into the city itself as fighters demanded payments ranging from 5 million to 60 million Sudanese pounds ($1,400 to $17,000).

The detentions highlight growing concerns over the fate of tens of thousands of people unaccounted for amid severe food shortages and restricted humanitarian access across the region, now entering its third year of conflict between the RSF and Sudan’s army.

Survivors described executions carried out in groups, beatings, and racial insults.

A Reuters journalist in Chad saw refugees bearing injuries consistent with gunshots and blunt-force trauma.

Many reported being asked to identify their tribe during interrogations, underscoring the ethnic dimension of violence in Darfur.

RSF legal adviser Mohamed Mukhtar told Reuters that many abductions were carried out by a rival group disguised in RSF uniforms.

An internal RSF investigative committee is reviewing more than 100 cases daily, according to committee head Ahmed al-Nour al-Hala, who said suspects have been arrested and nine convicted.

The UN describes Sudan as facing the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

Before the RSF takeover, al-Fashir had been the last major army-held city in Darfur, home to as many as 250,000 civilians. More than 100,000 people have fled since the city’s fall, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Several detainees described swift deadlines for ransom payment.

“They give you three or four days, and if you don’t transfer the money, they kill you,” said Mohamed Ismail, who was captured near Um Jalbakh with 24 other men.

He said he and a nephew gathered 10 million pounds each to secure their freedom, while nine other captives were executed.

Others described similar experiences.

One survivor, Yassir Hamad Ali, said RSF fighters beat him and initially demanded 150 million pounds for his release. Using a Starlink satellite terminal mounted on a vehicle, they contacted his family before agreeing to lower the ransom to 5 million pounds.

Another man, Ibrahim Kitr, said his family took a loan against their home to pay his ransom of 35 million pounds.

Aid workers noted that the scale of ransom-taking seen around al-Fashir is unprecedented, even in a conflict long marked by looting.

Satellite imagery from late November showed hundreds of new temporary structures in the village of Garney, suggesting long-term detention of civilians there.

While earlier reports suggested that men were separated from women upon arrival in some detention sites, new testimonies indicate women have also been held and assaulted. One woman said she was blindfolded and raped repeatedly in Garney. Another said she witnessed assaults and was threatened with death for attempting to intervene.

Eight former detainees said they were taken back to al-Fashir and held inside military facilities and university dormitories. One 62-year-old teacher said hundreds of men were crowded inside the children’s hospital, where he claimed at least 300 died after drinking contaminated stagnant water.

Others said they were released after ransom payments only to be detained again when passing through RSF-controlled towns.

Much of Darfur remains under a telecoms blackout, leading fighters to increasingly rely on satellite internet services such as Starlink to contact families during ransom negotiations.

Despite widespread reports of atrocities, RSF-affiliated accounts on social media have broadcast videos showing fighters distributing food and claiming to provide medical care. One captive nurse said she was filmed being given food for propaganda purposes before being mistreated off-camera.

The humanitarian situation around al-Fashir remains dire, with aid agencies struggling to gain access as famine looms over large parts of Darfur. — Agencies