EU statement - Human Rights Council - Oral Update on the Human Rights Situation in and around El Fasher

European Union

UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

Oral update on the human rights situation in and around El Fasher

EU statement - 9 February 2026

Mr (Ms Vice) President, 

The EU thanks the High Commissioner for his briefing on the situation in El Fasher and has welcomed his valuable visit to Sudan in January 2026. We agree that the human rights situation remains extremely alarming. Throughout this conflict, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), and their respective allies have perpetrated gross violations and abuses of international human rights law and of international humanitarian law. All abuses and violations must immediately stop.

The EU has strongly condemned the grave atrocities perpetrated by the RSF following their takeover of El Fasher, including ethnically targeted widespread unlawful killings, mass executions, starvation as a weapon of warfare, sexual violence and gender-based violence, and the targeting of civilians and civilian property, including health facilities and medical workers, while the ICC Prosecutor has concluded that war crimes and crimes against humanity were committed in El Fasher. The war continues to have a devastating impact on the civilian population, particularly on women and children as well as other persons in vulnerable situations.

The EU is gravely concerned about the situation in the Kordofan region and reiterates the High Commissioner’s calls that the horrors witnessed in El Fasher must not be repeated in El Obeid, Kadugli and Dilling, in North and South Kordofan states.

The EU continues to urge all parties to fully cooperate with the OHCHR, accountability mechanisms and all UN human rights mechanisms, notably the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for the Sudan and the International Criminal Court. The FFM’s work remains critically important to ensure accountability and to end the cycle of impunity that fuels new atrocities.

The EU calls on all parties to the conflict to engage constructively in inclusive negotiations towards an immediate and lasting ceasefire, respect international humanitarian law and international human rights law, as well as Sudan’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity. All external actors directly or indirectly supplying arms, financial support, or support of any other kind to the warring parties must immediately cease such support and comply with the UN arms embargo. The EU will continue to advocate for expanding the mandate of the ICC and the arms embargo to the whole country, while a stressing the urgent and foremost necessity of the full and effective of implementation of the UN arms embargo in Darfur.

The EU reiterates its deep concern for the human-induced humanitarian catastrophe in Sudan, the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today. All parties must finally uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law, including by ensuring unimpeded access for the delivery of humanitarian aid. The protection of civilians, civilian infrastructure, humanitarian workers, medical workers and humanitarian access must not be contingent on a ceasefire. The EU and its Member States will continue stepping up their humanitarian effort and aid, which currently stands at 522 MEUR within Sudan alone in 2025, while the EU alone has also allocated 109 MEUR for the humanitarian response to the Sudan crisis in neighbouring countries.

In December 2025, the EU and the AU have joined forces through the Quint process (AU, IGAD, LAS, EU and the UN) in the efforts for civilian unification and a broad Sudanese-led and Sudanese-owned inclusive political process. The EU continues to work with the Quad and with other international partners, including as a co-chair of the upcoming Berlin conference on 15 April 2026, which will be marking the third anniversary of the outbreak of the conflict and will be another occasion for the international community to join forces and draw attention to Sudan and its people. 

Mr High Commissioner, what further action is required to prevent these atrocities from being repeated in Kordofan?

Thank you, Mr President.