Darfur 24: Agencies
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that the United States has concluded that both sides of the conflict in Sudan committed war crimes, at a time when Washington is intensifying pressure on both the army and the Rapid Support Forces to end the fighting that has caused a humanitarian catastrophe.
Blinken said in a statement that Washington also concluded that the Rapid Support Forces and its allied militias committed crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.
The fighting that broke out in mid-April led to the displacement of more than 6.5 million people inside and outside Sudan, the death of more than ten thousand people, and the destruction of the economy.
“The needless expansion of the conflict between the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces has caused serious humanitarian suffering,” Blinken said.
The US Secretary called on both parties to “immediately stop this conflict, comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and hold those responsible for atrocities accountable.”
The Rapid Support Forces are accused of leading an ethnic massacre in West Darfur, and residents of the capital, Khartoum, accuse the paramilitary force of looting, raping, and detaining civilians.
At the same time, the army carried out an intense campaign of air and artillery strikes on residential neighborhoods controlled by the Rapid Support Forces, which experts say may constitute a violation of international law.
The official US decision was the result of a detailed legal process and analysis led by the US State Department, but it does not automatically include punitive measures and therefore has no immediate consequences for both parties.
This decision comes after the faltering of the talks brokered by Saudi Arabia and the United States with the aim of stopping the fighting between the two warring parties in Sudan again, and the army and the Rapid Support Forces continue military actions.
American pressure
The United States imposed several rounds of sanctions after war broke out between the army and the Rapid Support Forces in April over plans for a political transition and the integration of the Rapid Support Forces into the army four years after long-ruling President Omar al-Bashir was ousted in a popular uprising.
Among those targeted by the sanctions were the deputy commander of the Rapid Support Forces, former Sudanese officials, and companies that Washington accused of fueling the conflict.
But Washington has not yet directly targeted the army and the Rapid Support Forces with sanctions, despite calls by human rights activists for it to identify the parties and determine the crimes of genocide committed in Darfur.
But Blinken warned that the decision announced on Wednesday does not rule out the possibility of making other decisions in the future as more information becomes available.
“The United States is committed to building on this resolution and using available tools to end this conflict and stop committing atrocities and other violations that deprive the Sudanese people of freedom, peace, and justice,” he said.