The World Health Organization on Thursday condemned the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia for the reported massacre of 460 civilians at El-Fasher’s Saudi Hospital, days after the group seized control of the Darfur city from the Sudanese army.

The assault, described by medical networks as a “cold-blooded purge,” has intensified global alarm over ethnic violence and humanitarian collapse in Sudan’s 18-month civil war.

According to UN verification teams and local medics, RSF fighters stormed the hospital on Tuesday, executing patients, staff, and visitors. Six health workers—including four doctors, a pharmacist, and a nurse—were abducted, with ransoms exceeding $150,000 reportedly demanded. The Sudan Doctors’ Network said the facility was transformed into a “human slaughterhouse,” while activists from the El-Fasher Resistance Committee described a “horrifying silence” as gunfire echoed through the wards.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed outrage, calling the incident one of 185 verified attacks on Sudan’s health infrastructure since April 2023, with over 1,200 lives lost. “All attacks on health care must stop immediately… Ceasefire!” he urged, invoking international humanitarian law protections for civilians and medical personnel.

The RSF, led by commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, denied accusations of ethnic cleansing against non-Arab groups such as the Fur and Masalit, but pledged investigations. Rights monitors cited video evidence of execution-style killings during the city’s fall, echoing atrocities from Darfur’s early 2000s genocide.

El-Fasher’s capture marked the collapse of the army’s final stronghold in Darfur, effectively splitting Sudan between RSF-controlled western zones and central army-held regions. Fleeing residents, many trekking 60 kilometers to Tawila under shelling, recounted beatings, robberies, and executions at RSF checkpoints. “The shelling was so intense… we suffered greatly from hunger and thirst,” one father told the BBC.

Former UN aid chief Jan Egeland called El-Fasher “the worst place on Earth,” citing a convergence of massacres, famine, and medical collapse. The broader war—fueled by a power struggle between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Dagalo—has displaced millions and pushed thousands toward starvation.

BBC Verify confirmed social media footage showing RSF fighters shooting unarmed men, further fueling calls for accountability. Aid groups warn of a looming catastrophe, with communications blackouts hampering verification and relief efforts. The African Union and Western diplomats have urged renewed dialogue, but no breakthrough has emerged.