UN – The International Criminal Court (ICC) has affirmed that war crimes and crimes against humanity are currently being committed in Sudan’s Darfur region, Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan told the U.N. Security Council Thursday .
In her briefing, Khan described an escalating humanitarian catastrophe: civilians are being deliberately deprived of water and food, famine is worsening, hospitals and humanitarian convoys are under attack, sexual violence is being used as a weapon, and abductions—often to coerce individuals into joining armed groups or to demand ransom—have become routine.
Conflict that began in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has devastated Darfur. The RSF now controls much of the region, besieging key locations like El Fasher and targeting camps such as Zamzam, while SAF airstrikes have struck civilian areas. The death toll has surpassed 40,000, with nearly 13 million people displaced across Sudan and neighbouring countries.
The ICC’s investigation—part of its long-running Darfur inquiry since 2005—has amassed over 7,000 pieces of evidence, including documentary, testimonial, and digital materials, gathered from speakers and camps in nearby Chad. This comes as the court approaches its first verdict in the trial of Janjaweed leader Ali Kushayb, whose proceedings wrapped up in December 2024.
Khan warned that today’s perpetrators “…may feel a sense of impunity now—as Ali Kushayb may once have felt—but we are working intensively to ensure that his trial is only the first of many.”
Humanitarian agencies—including Doctors Without Borders, Human Rights Watch, and the U.N. Independent Fact‑Finding Mission—have documented systematic crimes: looting, ethnic cleansing targeting non-Arab communities (notably Zaghawa and Masalit people), bombing of medical facilities, and mass starvation due to blocked aid.
In January 2025, the U.S. determined the RSF’s actions constituted genocide, and international legal advocates submitted a 142-page dossier on RSF atrocities to the U.K.’s Metropolitan Police to support war crime prosecutions.
What Comes Next?
- ICC Prosecutions: The Khal-Kushayb verdict expected later this year will set a precedent. Further charges may target both RSF and SAF commanders if sufficient evidence is found.
- U.N. Security Council Action: International advocacy is pushing for targeted sanctions, strengthened humanitarian corridors, and potential referrals of new suspects.
- Humanitarian Risk: Aid delivery is severely restricted; famine risk is extreme. Agencies warn of further civilian suffering as the conflict intensifies.
