The International Criminal Court (ICC) has obtained concrete evidence linking leaders of Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to recent war crimes in Darfur, according to Deputy Chief Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan. In an interview with the BBC, Khan described the development as a breakthrough in the investigation into massacres in el-Fasher and el-Geneina.
Breakthrough in Darfur Investigation
Khan stated, "We have now found concrete evidence that links what is happening on the ground through linkage evidence to specific persons in leadership mode." She added that RSF leaders have also been linked to crimes against humanity. While she did not provide a timeline for charges, she emphasized that progress has been significant.
The siege and capture of el-Fasher in October last year was one of the bloodiest episodes in the ongoing conflict between the RSF and the Sudanese army. The United Nations reports that more than 6,000 people were killed during the takeover. The RSF is also accused of a similar massacre in el-Geneina, though the group denies carrying out widespread killings in Darfur.
UN Report Confirms Atrocities
A UN fact-finding mission report released on Wednesday found evidence of widespread atrocities by both the army and the RSF. It stated that RSF fighters were responsible for most systematic attacks on civilians, particularly in Darfur, where people were targeted on ethnic grounds, which may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. The report also noted that RSF fighters and affiliated groups committed sexual abuses, including rape, gang rape, and sexual slavery, during the capture of el-Fasher.
Khan spoke to the BBC after visiting refugee camps in eastern Chad, where she heard accounts of atrocities from those who fled the fighting in Darfur. Tens of thousands were forced to leave el-Fasher, and the UN described the violence as bearing the hallmarks of genocide. The RSF denies that killings were ethnically motivated and insists the scale of atrocities has been exaggerated, though it acknowledges some violations occurred.
Ongoing Investigation and Historical Context
Khan noted that the ICC investigation includes witness accounts, testimonials, and corroborative evidence such as videos, photographs, and forensic data. The court has previously made seven arrests and brought six cases for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur, including charges against former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who remains at large. Last year, the ICC sentenced Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, a senior Janjaweed figure, to 20 years in prison for 27 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed from 2003 to 2004.
The UK's Human Rights Ambassador, Eleanor Sanders, recently warned that the city of El-Obeid could face atrocities similar to those in el-Fasher. The UN Human Rights Council has ordered an urgent investigation into alleged crimes in El-Obeid. Khan highlighted that the patterns of offending mirror those seen 20 years ago when the situation was first referred to the ICC by the Security Council.
