Ransoms are a devastating reality for families in Sudan's besieged city of el-Fasher. When paramilitary forces stormed the city on October 26, two men - Mabrooka's husband and brother - fled with their three young children towards Tawila, some 60 kilometers away. However, they didn't reach there by sundown and it wasn't until days later that news spread about RSF atrocities and a phone call that would change everything.
Mabrooka received a call from an unknown number asking her to wire $23,000 in Sudanese pounds, a hefty sum for families displaced and destitute. The voice on the other end warned her that if she didn't pay, they would torture and kill them. Terrified, Mabrooka sent the money and anxiously waited to hear from her husband and brother.
Since the RSF captured el-Fasher's last stronghold in Darfur's western region, the group has committed numerous atrocities, including executions, rapes, and mass looting. The true death toll is unknown but survivors and local monitors estimate it to be over 1,500 people in the first few days after the city's fall.
The RSF claims its actions are part of "liberation," but mainly sedentary "non-Arab" populations have been targeted, forcing tens of thousands of people into neighboring villages. Many families who have tried to flee for their lives have been abducted by RSF fighters and asked to pay ransoms ranging from $20 to $20,000.
According to relief workers in Tawila, international organizations, and victims' families, many civilians are being detained while fleeing and are asked to pay a "transportation fee" to reach safety. Separated children have been left without parents, as well as women and children who lost their husbands. The Norwegian Refugee Council estimates over 70,000 people have been uprooted from el-Fasher since October 26, but only about 6,000 have reached Tawila so far.
The UN has warned that many are disappearing or being held back, with thousands of people desperate to send money to RSF fighters. In one video circulating on social media, Abbas al-Sadiq, a professor at el-Fasher University, pleaded for a ransom of $3,330 to save his life. His family paid the amount, and he was released after 10 minutes.
However, families are often too scared to speak out about their loved ones' kidnappings and ransom demands, fearing that the RSF will find out and kill them. For Mabrooka, who sent money for her husband and brother's release, it was a harrowing experience. Despite being considered lucky after they were freed on November 1, she knows that many others are still living in fear.
The RSF is seen as the prime suspect behind kidnappings, but some reports suggest that local militias may also be involved. Mabrooka and her husband's family believe the group could target Tawila next to continue their persecution of non-Arabs, which they describe as a possible genocide.
Mabrooka received a call from an unknown number asking her to wire $23,000 in Sudanese pounds, a hefty sum for families displaced and destitute. The voice on the other end warned her that if she didn't pay, they would torture and kill them. Terrified, Mabrooka sent the money and anxiously waited to hear from her husband and brother.
Since the RSF captured el-Fasher's last stronghold in Darfur's western region, the group has committed numerous atrocities, including executions, rapes, and mass looting. The true death toll is unknown but survivors and local monitors estimate it to be over 1,500 people in the first few days after the city's fall.
The RSF claims its actions are part of "liberation," but mainly sedentary "non-Arab" populations have been targeted, forcing tens of thousands of people into neighboring villages. Many families who have tried to flee for their lives have been abducted by RSF fighters and asked to pay ransoms ranging from $20 to $20,000.
According to relief workers in Tawila, international organizations, and victims' families, many civilians are being detained while fleeing and are asked to pay a "transportation fee" to reach safety. Separated children have been left without parents, as well as women and children who lost their husbands. The Norwegian Refugee Council estimates over 70,000 people have been uprooted from el-Fasher since October 26, but only about 6,000 have reached Tawila so far.
The UN has warned that many are disappearing or being held back, with thousands of people desperate to send money to RSF fighters. In one video circulating on social media, Abbas al-Sadiq, a professor at el-Fasher University, pleaded for a ransom of $3,330 to save his life. His family paid the amount, and he was released after 10 minutes.
However, families are often too scared to speak out about their loved ones' kidnappings and ransom demands, fearing that the RSF will find out and kill them. For Mabrooka, who sent money for her husband and brother's release, it was a harrowing experience. Despite being considered lucky after they were freed on November 1, she knows that many others are still living in fear.
The RSF is seen as the prime suspect behind kidnappings, but some reports suggest that local militias may also be involved. Mabrooka and her husband's family believe the group could target Tawila next to continue their persecution of non-Arabs, which they describe as a possible genocide.
my heart goes out to mabrooka and her family who got lucky but others aren't so fortunate the fact that they're too scared to speak out is just heartbreaking
️ $23k ransom is just crazy, like what's the point of paying? Are people that desperate 2 b held captive & tortured? 
it's all so heartless 
. And what's even more disturbing is that many families are too scared to speak out because they fear getting killed themselves. It's a vicious cycle and we need to do something about it ASAP 
.
. It's time for us to take action and demand justice for them 
.
what kind of world do we live in where people are being held for ransom? 
it's crazy how many ppl are being forced to send money and some even get released after paying but still their lives r traumatized 
.
. We need to be supporting the families and communities affected by this and working towards justice for those who have been hurt. This situation requires our collective outrage and support 
. The psychological toll on families who have had to pay ransoms, as well as those who have lost loved ones, is simply too much to bear 
. And it's not just the ones who send the money that are suffering, but also their loved ones who are left behind to pick up the pieces. 
. I don't know how the world can stand by and watch this happen without doing something about it 
.