RSF Accused of Running Secret Execution Chambers in the Sudanese Capital

Guillotine set up inside a house in Omdurman

May 12, 2024 (KHARTOUM) – A disturbing investigation by Sudan Tribune has uncovered evidence suggesting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been executing civilians by hanging inside secret execution chambers across the capital, Khartoum.

The ongoing conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF has already witnessed countless civilian casualties. However, the investigation reveals a new level of brutality – executions by hanging inside private residences across the capital.

Sudan Tribune obtained a video clip depicting professionally constructed gallows set up inside a house in Omdurman’s Wad al-Basir area. Additionally, a guillotine was discovered installed within the same building.

Eyewitness accounts

Residents recently returned to areas previously controlled by the RSF have provided chilling accounts. They described an execution chamber in an apartment located on Wad al-Basir Street, a location reclaimed by the army in February.

Video clips of executions and ethnic cleansing committed by the fighting forces in Sudan are circulating on social media. These videos show cold-blooded executions of civilians in various regions, as confirmed by international reports and human rights organizations.

Activists told Sudan Tribune about the existence of at least 14 secret execution chambers established by the RSF in Khartoum, Bahri, and Omdurman. These facilities are allegedly overseen by officers who act as judges, issuing death sentences for civilians accused of collaborating with the army intelligence.

An activist in Khartoum Bahri documented the presence of six RSF execution rooms in a house on Al-Inqaz Street, facing the Weta Factory. There are also two rooms in the Shambat Al-Aradi neighbourhood, another in the Al-Safia neighbourhood, and two rooms near the Parachute Regiment camp in the Hijra neighbourhood.

Guillotine of death

Activists and residents in Omdurman, including those living on Wad al-Basir Street in the Wad Nubawi neighbourhood, confirmed the existence of an execution chamber used by the RSF. One resident described the setup: a steel beam near the ceiling, a steel stand in the middle, a strong rope attached to it, and a deep hole dug into the floor.

In the Umbada area, residents confirmed the existence of two execution rooms. Steel legs were found inside two houses, along with the remains of people who had been hanged. It was unclear whether the victims were soldiers or civilians.

The RSF has executed dozens of people by hanging in four neighbourhoods in Khartoum. Residents in Al-Kalakla, south of Khartoum, confirmed executions in the Al-Kalakla Al-Qubba, Al-Safa, and Al-Kalakla Al-Munawara neighbourhoods.

A resident of the Al-Sajana neighbourhood mentioned in a telephone interview with Sudan Tribune that there are execution and torture rooms inside houses near the El-Alamein Sports Club. He confirmed that six people were executed there at varying intervals.

He also mentioned an execution guillotine set up on a tree inside one of the houses, visible from the outside. RSF Soldiers modified it multiple times and executed people at night.

He added that the bodies were transported to an unknown location, with soldiers dragging the bodies away before returning to the same house.

Despite the conflict entering its second year (since April 2023), the RSF retains control of Khartoum city, while the Sudanese army has recaptured Omdurman and significant portions of Khartoum Bahri.