Rights groups have accused General al-Burhan’s army (SAF) of committing severe human rights violations, including torture and mass killings of civilians and prisoners of war at a detention facility in Jabal Sirkab, north of Omdurman.
Jabal Sirkab, located near the Wadi Sidna military base, is reportedly used to detain thousands of civilians suspected of collaborating with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), as well as captured RSF fighters.
According to multiple sources, detainees at the facility face brutal treatment, including systematic torture, starvation, and lack of medical care.
1,500 Deaths in One Year
A recent report by Rahab Mubarak, a member of the executive office of the human rights organization Emergency Lawyers, claims that more than 1,500 people have died in the past 12 months due to abuse and neglect at the site.
Survivors have described horrific conditions, with bodies of those who perished buried in mass graves, often left exposed to scavenging animals.
Witnesses cited in the report, identified only as “M.A.” and “A.N.,” described spending months in the detention facility before fleeing the country. They recounted harrowing scenes where groups of detainees were forced to dig graves daily, burying as many as 30 bodies in a single day.
Secret Detention Sites Across Omdurman
The report also points to the existence of multiple SAF-run detention centers across Omdurman. These include sites in the high-rise buildings of the Al-Abraj complex, where various militias, including the Al-Baraa bin Malik Brigade and the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), allegedly operate secret prisons.
Residential neighborhoods such as Madinat Al-Nil, Al-Sakan Al-Fakhir, and Al-Rawdah have also reportedly been converted into detention and torture centers overseen by SAF forces and jihadist militias.
Brutal Methods of Torture
Former detainees have detailed systematic torture inside Jabal Sirkab. They described daily beatings with whips, batons, and metal-filled hoses. A military officer known as “Abu Aqilah” was identified as one of the main perpetrators, allegedly using a hammer to strike prisoners indiscriminately.
Another soldier, identified as “Mubarak Wad Abok,” reportedly inflicted lasting injuries by repeatedly striking detainees’ legs with a heavy wooden club.
The report further states that rape is widespread inside the facility, affecting both male and female detainees.
Food and medical care are virtually nonexistent, with 11 prisoners sharing a single piece of bread and a handful of lentils twice a day.
Allegations of Executions
The RSF has previously accused SAF military intelligence of executing more than 600 prisoners and civilian detainees at Karrari Air Base and the Sawaga Camp in Bahri.
RSF legal advisor Mohamed Mukhtar Al-Nour claimed the SAF holds over 800 detainees, most of them civilians suspected of RSF affiliations, and that many were killed based on ethnic or regional backgrounds.
Among those allegedly executed was First Lieutenant Mohamed Hamid Saleh Jibril, a police officer with no known RSF ties, reportedly targeted due to his origins in Al-Daein. Another victim, tribal leader Bashir Al-Nour, was allegedly killed for being from El Geneina.
The SAF has not publicly responded to these allegations.
Escalating Human Rights Concerns
The reported abuses come as Sudan remains locked in a brutal conflict between the SAF, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the RSF, commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.
Since the war erupted in April 2023, Sudan has plunged into one of the worst humanitarian crises in its history, with mass displacement, widespread atrocities, and a collapsing state infrastructure.
Rights groups are calling for international investigations into the reported crimes at Jabal Sirkab and other detention sites. However, with Sudan’s security situation deteriorating and access to conflict zones severely restricted, independent verification remains difficult.
