Rapid Support Forces

Sudanese paramilitary force formed in 2013

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March 26 2025 SAF declared Khartoum 'free' from RSF, completing their drive-out after nearly two years of occupation.
March 23 2025 Sudanese army commander Yasser al-Atta warns about potential military action against Chad's airports, criticizing UAE's weapon supply to RSF and calling UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed 'the devil of Arabs'.
March 21 2025 Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) retook the presidential palace in Khartoum, achieving a symbolic victory against the RSF.
March 11 2025 Democrat lawmakers Chris Van Hollen and Sara Jacobs reintroduced the 'Stand Up for Sudan Act' to block U.S. arms sales to the UAE due to its support of RSF.
February 2025 Ethiopia hosted the High-Level Humanitarian Conference for the People of Sudan in Addis Ababa, organized by the UAE and attended by the African Union and IGAD, despite criticism from Sudan's government.
February 18 2025 RSF announced the formation of a parallel government in exile called the Government of Peace and Unity, established in Nairobi, Kenya.
January 7 2025 The U.S. government officially accused the Rapid Support Forces of genocide, imposing sanctions on leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. Sanctions included asset freezes, a travel ban, and sanctions on seven RSF-owned companies in the United Arab Emirates.
November 2024 U.S. lawmakers Chris Van Hollen and Sara Jacobs filed a joint resolution to block arms sales to the UAE until it stops arming the RSF.
November 2024 Colombian military contractors were seized in Darfur, revealed to be recruits of Abu Dhabi-based Global Security Services Group (GSSG), hired to support the UAE's efforts in bolstering RSF's position in the war.
November 14 2024 Amnesty International investigation revealed UAE-produced Nimr armored personnel carriers were being used by RSF in Sudan, which Agnès Callamard called a violation of the UN arms embargo.
November 12 2024 The U.S. sanctioned RSF commander Abdel Rahman Juma Barkalla in East Darfur for serious human rights violations, including harm to civilians, sexual violence, and ethnically motivated attacks.
October 14 2024 Sudan denied UAE's allegations and threatened legal action, with Foreign Minister Hussein Awad expressing disappointment over countries echoing UAE's claims.
September 9 2024 Human Rights Watch reported that RSF obtained advanced foreign-made weapons, with UAE-based companies associated with weapon supplies.
July 2024 A leaked UN document claimed four Emirati passports were recovered from a wrecked vehicle in Omdurman, allegedly belonging to UAE intelligence officers linked to RSF.
July 1 2024 RSF took full control of Singa, causing many civilians to flee towards Gedaref in eastern Sudan. The RSF secured the Blue Nile Bridge and the deserted headquarters of the Sudanese Army's 65th Brigade.
June 30 2024 The army targeted 17th Infantry Division headquarters, General Intelligence Service (GIS) buildings, and a guesthouse.
April 17 2024 US envoy to Sudan, Tom Perriello, expressed concerns about UAE's financial support to RSF and alleged UAE's complicity in atrocities.
March 2024 Sudan's UN Representative Al-Harith Idriss Al-Harith Mohamed wrote a 78-page complaint condemning UAE's support to RSF, alleging weapon and equipment supply.
January 2024 Authorities in Gedaref State, Sudan, arrested six Ethiopian women accused of serving as snipers for the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), with reports indicating they had been operating within the group for over a year.
December 19 2023 A group of Democratic U.S. Congress members wrote a letter calling on the UAE to cease its support of the RSF.
September 9 2023 Human Rights Watch reported that RSF obtained advanced foreign-made weapons and military equipment, with UAE-based companies associated with these weapons.
July 2023 Authorities reported at least 88 cases of sexual assault on women across Sudan, with most cases blamed on the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
July 28 2023 Human Rights Watch released a 89-page report titled 'Khartoum is Not Safe for Women', documenting widespread sexual violence, including gang rape and forced marriages, committed by RSF in Khartoum since the conflict's onset.
April 2023 Al Jazeera reported that RSF sought Western public relations firms to improve its image, including attempts to edit Wikipedia pages.
April 24 2023 A 72-hour nationwide ceasefire was announced, mediated by the United States and Saudi Arabia on humanitarian grounds. By 25 April, the fighting had caused over 500 deaths and thousands of injuries.
April 18 2023 The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) removed the word 'Quds' (meaning Jerusalem) from its official logo. The previous logo contained the word below the arrow in the middle, while the new version omits this reference. The logo change occurred amid the ongoing civil war in Sudan, with the previous logo still remaining on social media platforms.
April 17 2023 US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held talks with RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, who agreed to a 24-hour armistice beginning on 18 April 2023.
April 15 2023 Fighting broke out between the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces after the RSF mobilized its forces in cities across Sudan, including Darfur. The SAF designated the RSF as a rebel group.
April 15 2023 Fighting broke out between the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces (RSF), with mobilization in cities across Sudan. Clashes were reported at the presidential palace and army headquarters, including the Battle of Khartoum, with both sides claiming control over Khartoum and Merowe airports.
February 2022 RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo met with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the leader of the United Arab Emirates.
2019 Hemedti was involved in a crackdown on protesters during Sudan's 2019 revolution.
2019 Global Witness reported that the United Arab Emirates was a key supplier of military equipment to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
2019 Hemedti became one of the richest people in Sudan, largely due to the gold mining operations initiated in 2017.
December 2019 Global Witness published an investigation into RSF and Al Junaid corporation, examining their financial connections and potential economic ties.
October 2019 10,000 RSF soldiers return to Sudan after international deployments.
October 2019 10,000 RSF members returned to Sudan from the Yemeni Civil War.
July 2019 Approximately 1,000 RSF soldiers are deployed to Libya to support Khalifa Haftar's Libyan National Army.
July 2019 RSF deployed approximately 1,000 soldiers to Libya, supporting Khalifa Haftar's Libyan National Army during the Western Libya offensive phase of the Second Libyan Civil War.
June 10 2019 Janjaweed/RSF (Rapid Support Forces) carried out a massacre in al-Dalij village market in Central Darfur, shooting dead nine people and burning down the market. Local interpretation suggests this was a violent response to civil disobedience.
June 6 2019 Kumi Naidoo, head of Amnesty International, publicly addressed the Khartoum Massacre and called for international action in response to the human rights violations.
June 3 2019 RSF, along with other security forces, carried out the Khartoum massacre during the Sudanese political crisis, violently cracking down on pro-democracy demonstrators.
June 3 2019 Reports emerged that RSF tied cement bricks to bodies of dead protestors to make them sink to the bottom of the Nile, attempting to hide evidence of the killings.
June 3 2019 During the first day of Eid al-Fitr, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia committed the Khartoum Massacre, killing 100 protestors, injuring 500, raping women, and pillaging homes during the 2018–19 Sudanese protests.
2018 Hemedti allegedly received security services from the Wagner Group during his visit to Russia.
2018 During the 2018-19 crisis, the RSF was accused of committing severe human rights violations, including raping 70 male and female protesters during the Khartoum massacre.
December 2018 New York Times reported that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) recruited children and sent them to fight in the Yemen war, revealing serious human rights violations involving child soldiers.
November 2017 Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) used Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to take control of gold mines in the Darfur region, initiating a significant economic expansion for the organization.
2016 RSF deployed 40,000 members to participate in the Yemeni Civil War alongside Saudi and Emirati forces.
2016 RSF begins participation in the Yemeni Civil War, with approximately 40,000 members involved.
2015 RSF continued military operations in Darfur, conducting attacks with support from the Sudanese Armed Forces, targeting villages and civilian populations after rebel forces had left the area.

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