THE HAGUE/UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The International Criminal Court (ICC) has launched an investigation into the escalating violence in Sudan’s Darfur region since mid-April. The ICC’s top prosecutor informed the United Nations on Thursday about reports of killings, rapes, arson, displacement, and crimes affecting children. This surge of hostilities involves the regular army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) embroiled in a power struggle that erupted in mid-April.
As a result of this violence, more than 3 million people in Sudan’s Darfur region have been uprooted, with over 700,000 fleeing to neighboring countries. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned last week that Sudan, the third largest country in Africa, was on the brink of a full-scale civil war that could have wider regional implications.
In a report to the U.N. Security Council, Prosecutor Karim Khan’s office confirmed that investigations have begun concerning incidents related to the ongoing hostilities. The ICC prosecutors are closely monitoring reports of extrajudicial killings, destruction of homes and markets, and looting in West Darfur’s Al Geneina. They are also looking into the killing and displacement of civilians in North Darfur and other areas across Darfur. Additionally, allegations of sexual and gender-based crimes, including mass rapes and violence against children, are being examined.
In El Geneina, witnesses have recounted numerous attacks by Arab militias and the RSF against the non-Arab Masalit people, the largest community in the city. These attacks have forced tens of thousands to seek refuge in nearby Chad.
Although the ICC currently cannot operate within Sudan due to the security situation, it aims to do so as soon as possible. Its jurisdiction, under a 2005 U.N. Security Council resolution, is limited to the Darfur region.
Notably, the ICC holds four outstanding arrest warrants related to the previous conflict in Darfur between 2003 and 2008. One of these warrants is against former Sudanese President Omar al Bashir on charges of genocide. Al Bashir and two other former ministers wanted by the ICC for alleged war crimes in Darfur had been in custody in Sudan. However, the army claimed that Bashir and one of the ministers, Abdelrahim Mohamed Hussein, had been transferred to a military hospital before the outbreak of the recent fighting. The other minister, Ahmed Haroun, stated that he had escaped from prison with others ten days after the conflict began.
Prosecutor Khan has sent a request to Sudan’s government, which has a history of non-cooperation with the ICC, to ascertain the current whereabouts of the suspects.
In April, the ICC commenced its first trial related to Darfur crimes involving the alleged Janjaweed leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman.
Reporting by Anthony Deutsch and Stephanie van den Berg; Editing by Rosalba O’Brien
Credit: The Star : News Feed
