Sudanese journalist Taj al-Sir Ahmed Suleiman killed by RSF paramilitary in EL-Fasher

New York, December 2, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls for an urgent investigation into the killing of journalist Taj al-Sir Ahmed Suleiman, director of the Sudan News Agency (SUNA) office in Sudan’s western city of El-Fasher, after reports that fighters from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces executed him and his brother in their home.

“We are appalled by the reported killing of SUNA bureau chief Taj al-Sir Ahmed Suleiman and his brother after RSF forces advanced into El-Fasher,” said CPJ Chief Programs Officer Carlos Martínez de la Serna. “Sudanese authorities must urgently investigate this killing and hold those responsible to account. All parties to the conflict must stop targeting journalists and civilians and immediately ensure the safety of members of the press.”

On October 26, the RSF, a paramilitary group born from the Janjaweed militias and accused by the European Union of ethnically-motivated crimes, claimed full control of El-Fasher. The city, besieged by the RSF for 18 months, was the group’s final barrier to controlling all of Darfur and establishing a parallel government in the region. 

In a statement on November 27, SUNA said Suleiman had reported and documented developments in El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State, until he went missing during the RSF takeover. The agency stated that he was killed in the Al-Daraga neighborhood, when RSF fighters entered his home and allegedly executed him and his brother.

A local journalist, who spoke to CPJ on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal, said Suleiman was one of the key sources of verified information from El-Fasher during the siege. His disappearance, and now his reported killing, has had “a devastating impact on the flow of independent reporting from North Darfur.”

Since the war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF began in April 2023, CPJ has documented the killing of at least 15 journalists and media workers in Sudan. Journalists in the El-Fasher have faced abductions, disappearances, sexual violence, and deadly attacks amid a communications blackout and severe shortages of food, medical care, and safe shelter.

CPJ contacted the RSF through its official channels to request comment on Suleiman’s killing but did not receive a response.