Sexual violence against women and girls in Darfur is being systematically used as a weapon of war, according to a new report by Doctors Without Borders. The medical humanitarian organisation has warned that no location in the region — not even homes, displacement camps or healthcare facilities — remains safe for women. Since the conflict in Sudan intensified in April 2023, the group has recorded a sharp increase in patients seeking care for sexual violence at its clinics in Chad and eastern Sudan. In one three-week period in June 2024, 81 survivors were treated, many of whom reported attacks by armed men in uniform. Survivors described being raped in front of family members, abducted during forced displacement, or assaulted while searching for food and water.
Doctors Without Borders stated that the scale and pattern of the attacks suggest they are not isolated incidents but part of a deliberate strategy. The organisation's report highlights that fear of violence has forced many women to remain indoors, limiting their access to essential resources and medical care. One survivor recounted being attacked by multiple men near a camp for displaced people, saying, "I thought I would die there, and no one would know." The group has called for greater protection measures and unhindered access for humanitarian workers in conflict zones. The United Nations and other international bodies have previously documented similar patterns of abuse in Darfur, but the current level of violence is described as the worst in over a decade.
When Doctors Without Borders says no place is safe for women in Darfur, it means armed groups are operating without fear of consequence, turning entire communities into hunting grounds. The report's findings — 81 survivors treated in just three weeks — reflect not just a health crisis but a collapse of basic human security. This level of organised sexual violence as a tactic of war demands more than condemnation; it exposes the failure of global mechanisms meant to protect civilians in conflict. If such atrocities can unfold with total impunity in 2024, the rules meant to govern war are already broken.
