ICC believes war crimes and crimes against humanity are taking place now in Sudan's Darfur region
Nazhat Shameem Khan told the U.N. Security Council that the depth of suffering and the humanitarian crisis in Darfur 'has reached an intolerable state,' with famine escalating and hospitals, humanitarian convoys and other civilian infrastructure being targeted.
'People are being deprived of water and food,' she said. 'Rape and sexual violence are being weaponized. Abductions for ransom or to bolster the ranks of armed groups have become common practice.'
'And yet we should not be under any illusion,' Shameem Khan warned the U.N.'s most powerful body. 'Things can still get worse.'
Sudan plunged into conflict in mid-April 2023, when long-simmering tensions between its military and paramilitary leaders broke out in the capital, Khartoum, and spread to other regions, including Darfur. Some 40,000 people have been killed and nearly 13 million displaced, including to other countries, according to U.N. agencies.
ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan told the Security Council in January that there were grounds to believe both government forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Force, may be committing war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide in Darfur.
The Biden administration, just before it left office in January, determined that the RSF and its proxies were committing genocide.
Karim Khan has stepped down temporarily as the ICC chief prosecutor pending the outcome of an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct, which he categorically denies.
Deputy prosecutor Shameem Khan, who is not related, said the ICC has closely tracked reports in recent weeks of the dire situation in North Darfur, whose capital El Fasher is besieged by RSF and their affiliates. The RSF, which controls the capitals of all other states in Darfur, has also attacked famine-hit Zamzam and other camps for displaced Sudanese in North Darfur.
'On the basis of our independent investigations, the position of our office is clear, we have reasonable grounds to believe that war crimes and crimes against humanity have been and are continuing to be committed in Darfur,' Khan told the council.
This conclusion, she said, is based on documentary, testimonial and digital evidence collected by ICC investigators during the past six months, including at refugee camps in neighboring Chad. Over 7,000 items of evidence have been collected to date, she said.
Khan emphasized to the council and to victims that the ICC considers the situation in Darfur 'of the utmost importance' and will not be deterred until justice is delivered to the perpetrators.
Two decades ago, Darfur became synonymous with genocide and war crimes, particularly by the notorious Janjaweed Arab militias, against populations that identify as Central or East African. Up to 300,000 people were killed and 2.7 million were driven from their homes.
Khan said those in Darfur now 'inflicting unimaginable atrocities on its population' should know that while they may feel a sense of impunity, Janjaweed leader Ali Kushayb is currently on trial and the ICC hopes it will be the first of many.
'However, we also have a duty of confidentiality to the court,' Khan said. 'I am not able to share more details of the nature of our progress or of specific outcomes hoped for. I can only assure you that the progress we have made is concrete, positive and significant.'
___
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
7 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Syria's leader urges Bedouin tribes to commit to a ceasefire ending clashes with the Druze
In his second televised address since the fighting started, al-Sharaa blamed 'armed groups from Sweida' for reigniting the conflict by 'launching retaliatory attacks against the Bedouins and their families.' He also said Israeli intervention 'pushed the country into a dangerous phase.' Advertisement Israel had launched dozens of airstrikes on convoys of government fighters and even struck the Syrian Defense Ministry headquarters in central Damascus, saying it was in support of the Druze, who form a substantial community in Israel and are seen as a loyal minority, often serving in the Israeli military. Reports had surfaced of Syrian government-affiliated fighters executing Druze civilians and looting and burning homes over the four-day violence. The U.S. envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, announced that Israel and Syria had agreed to a ceasefire early Saturday. Al-Sharaa made no direct reference to the agreement in his speech, but said 'American and Arab mediations stepped in' to restore calm. Addressing the Bedouins, al-Sharaa said they 'cannot replace the role of the state in handling the country's affairs and restoring security.' He also said: 'We thank the Bedouins for their heroic stances but demand they fully commit to the ceasefire and comply with the state's orders.' Advertisement Meanwhile, a prominent Druze leader, Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hijri, who opposes the current government and has distanced himself from the two ceasefires announced on Tuesday and Wednesday, said that an agreement brokered under the sponsorship of guarantor states contained several measures aimed at de-escalating tensions in Sweida. They include the deployment of checkpoints outside the province's administrative borders to contain clashes and prevent infiltration, a 48-hour ban on entry by any party into border villages, and safe, guaranteed passage for remaining members of the Bedouin tribes still inside the province. Sharaa reiterated that Sweida 'remains an integral part of the Syrian state, and the Druze constitute a fundamental pillar of the Syrian national fabric,' vowing to protect all minorities in Syria. He also thanked the United States for its 'significant role in affirming its support for Syria during these difficult times,' as well as Arab countries and Turkey, which mediated Wednesday's truce. More than half of the roughly 1 million Druze worldwide live in Syria. Most of the other Druze live in Lebanon and Israel, including in the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast War and annexed in 1981. The U.N. estimates more than 87,000 people have been displaced in Sweida province since July 12 due to heavy shelling, sniper fire and abductions. Entire communities have fled on foot, with many now crammed into overcrowded schools, churches and public buildings under dire conditions, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a report. Infrastructure damage has cut electricity, water and telecommunications in much of the area, it said. The main hospital in Sweida was operating at just 15% capacity due to staff shortages and a lack of fuel. Advertisement The security situation is also endangering humanitarian workers. The White Helmets, also known as the Syrian Civil Defense, reported that one of its emergency team leaders went missing on July 16 while responding to a call for help from a U.N. team, OCHA said. Meanwhile, Jordan, Syria, and the U.S. agreed on a set of practical steps to bolster the ceasefire, including the deployment of Syrian security forces and the release of detainees from all sides, Jordan's Foreign Ministry said on Saturday. The announcement came after a meeting between Barrack, Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani and his Jordanian counterpart Ayman Safadi. For his part, Syria's Minister of Information Hamza Al-Mostafa on Saturday said the first phase of the ceasefire, expected to take 48 hours, involves deploying internal security forces to key areas to prevent clashes. He acknowledged ongoing fighting in Sweida and said every ceasefire 'begins fragile.' Subsequent phases will open humanitarian crossings and gradually restore state institutions and security to ensure a return to normalcy, al-Mostafa said in a press conference in Damascus. Al-Mostafa acknowledged that some security personnel committed violations after deploying in Sweida. He rejected reports that the violence in Sweida was 'premeditated operation' by the Syrian government. 'The armed groups present in Sweida insisted on a provocative approach, rejecting any solutions and relying on a closed-off model that disregards Syria's unity,' Al-Mostafa said. He accused Al-Hijri and his supporters of being 'armed with Israeli support' and blamed them for 'steering the situation toward its current state,' despite previous government attempts to reach an agreement. Advertisement Al-Mostafa also denied that Syria and Israel are in direct peace talks. 'All discussions that are happening with Israel are fixated on one issue related to the urgent Israeli withdrawal from the areas that it occupied and advanced in after Dec. 8 and its commitment to the 1974 agreement of disengagement,' he said. But even as officials called for calm, signs of unrest spread to the capital. On Friday, men armed with sticks stormed a peaceful protest outside Syria's parliament in Damascus, beating demonstrators and tearing up a banner that read, 'Syrian blood should not be shed by Syrians,' according to one of the organizers. The protest was held in response to the deadly clashes in Sweida, which journalist and filmmaker Zein Khuzam described as a grim echo of the 2011 Syrian civil war. 'We felt like we needed to do something,' Khuzam told The Associated Press. 'We started receiving help messages from our friends in Sweida, that they are trapped there.' The demonstration began Thursday as a spontaneous act by Khuzam and two others, who stood in front of parliament holding signs, including slogans rejecting Israeli interference. Photos of the protest circulated online, drawing a larger crowd the next day. Khuzam said the group noticed a man acting suspiciously on Friday. After making a phone call, he left, and shortly afterward, the attackers arrived in cars, some with women inside who cheered them on, she said. She added that guards outside the parliament stood by as someone fired shotgun rounds to disperse the crowd. 'People are still carrying the traumas of Assad's actions during such peaceful protests,' she said. 'In that moment, it felt like history was repeating itself. It is very, very sad.' Advertisement ___ Abou AlJoud reported from Beirut. Associated Press journalist Omar Sanadiki in Damascus contributed to this report.
Boston Globe
8 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Congo and Rwanda-backed rebels sign declaration of principles to end conflict in eastern Congo
Bertrand Bisimwa, an M23 leader, said on X that the declaration is 'not a question of withdrawal but of mechanisms for empowering the state, enabling it to assume its prerogatives and obligations.' M23 spokesman Lawrence Kanyuka told The Associated Press in a telephone call: 'We are in Goma with the population and we are not going to get out.' However, Congolese government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said the declaration takes into account 'the non-negotiable withdrawal' of the rebels, followed by the deployment of government forces and institutions. Advertisement Backed by neighboring Rwanda, the M23 is the most prominent of more than 100 armed groups fighting for control in Congo's mineral-rich east. With 7 million people displaced in Congo, the U.N. has called the conflict in eastern Congo 'one of the most protracted, complex, serious humanitarian crises on Earth.' Saturday's signing is the first direct commitment by both sides since the rebels seized two key cities in eastern Congo in a major advance early this year. A final peace deal is to be signed no later than Aug. 18, and it 'shall align with the Peace Agreement between Congo and Rwanda,' facilitated by the U.S. in June, according to a copy of the declaration seen by AP. Advertisement M23 had been pushing for the release of its members held by Congo's military, many of them facing the death sentence. Congo had requested the withdrawal of the rebels from seized territories. 'The Declaration of Principles signed today paves the way for direct negotiations towards a comprehensive peace that addresses the deep-rooted causes of the conflict,' the Qatari minister said. Rwanda's Foreign Affairs Ministry called it 'a significant step forward' in ending the conflict. The U.S. State Department said in a statement that America remains committed to supporting 'a peace that results in the restoration of (Congolese) authority and inclusive governance' in the region. In Goma, the city at the center of the conflict, locals received the news of the signing with mixed feelings, with most expressing doubts over the possibility of a lasting peace without a provision for victims of the decadeslong conflict. 'We cannot build peace without justice and reparation,' said Amani Muisa, a resident of Goma. The document touches on most of the highlights of the peace deal Congo and Rwanda signed on June 27, including the protection and safe return of millions who fled the conflict. Massad Boulos, a senior adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump who attended the Doha-led talks, said on Saturday: 'It is time to find a final solution' to the conflict, reiterating that the most important article of the agreement is the affirmation of state control in rebel-held territories. Advertisement 'The issue requires dialogue, and following up on this dialogue and requires persistence,' Boulos said. Another key issue the two sides will have to face is whether Rwanda will stop supporting the rebels, including the thousands of troops that the United Nations experts said are in eastern Congo. When Rwanda and Congo signed the peace deal in Washington, Rwandan Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe said Rwanda agreed to lift its 'defensive measures' — suggesting a reference to its troops in eastern Congo — once Congo neutralizes an armed group whose members Kigali accuses of carrying out the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Analysts have said it is going to be difficult for the M23 rebels to withdraw from the eastern Congolese cities of Goma and Bukavu and that it would depend on concessions the Congolese authorities agree to make. There have also been doubts about long-lasting peace if justice for the victims of the war is not addressed.
USA Today
11 hours ago
- USA Today
At least 32 killed by Israeli fire while seeking aid in Gaza, hospital says
GAZA, July 19 (Reuters) - At least 32 people were killed by Israeli fire while they were on their way to an aid distribution site in Gaza at dawn on Saturday, according to the Gaza Health Ministry and Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. The Israeli military said it had fired warning shots at suspects who approached its troops after they did not heed calls to stop, about a kilometre away from an aid distribution site that was not active at the time. Gaza resident Mohammed al-Khalidi said he was in the group approaching the site and heard no warnings before the firing began. "We thought they came out to organise us so we can get aid, suddenly (I) saw the jeeps coming from one side, and the tanks from the other and started shooting at us," he said. The Gaza Humanitarian Fund, a U.S.-backed group which runs the aid site, said there were no incidents or fatalities there on Saturday and that it has repeatedly warned people not to travel to its distribution points at dark. "The reported IDF (Israel defence Forces) activity resulting in fatalities occurred hours before our sites opened and our understanding is most of the casualties occurred several kilometres away from the nearest GHF site," it said. The Israeli military said it was reviewing the incident. Deaths near aid sites GHF uses private U.S. security and logistics companies to get supplies into Gaza, largely bypassing a U.N.-led system that Israel alleges has let Hamas-led militants loot aid shipments intended for civilians. Hamas denies the accusation. The U.N. has called the GHF's model unsafe and a breach of humanitarian impartiality standards, which GHF denies. On Tuesday, the U.N. rights office in Geneva said it had recorded at least 875 killings within the past six weeks in the vicinity of aid sites and food convoys in Gaza - the majority of them close to GHF distribution points. Most of those deaths were caused by gunfire that locals have blamed on the Israeli military. The military has acknowledged that civilians were harmed, saying that Israeli forces had been issued new instructions with "lessons learned". At least 18 more people were killed in other Israeli attacks across Gaza on Saturday, health officials said. The Israeli military said that it had struck militants' weapon depots and sniping posts in a few locations in the enclave. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza. The Israeli military campaign against Hamas in Gaza has since killed around 58,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians according to health officials, displaced almost the entire population and plunged the enclave into a humanitarian crisis, leaving much of the territory in ruins. Israel and Hamas are engaged in indirect talks in Qatar aimed at reaching a 60-day ceasefire though there has been no sign of any imminent breakthrough. (Reporting by Hussam al-Masri in Gaza, Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo and Maayan Lubell in Jerusalem; Writing by Maayan Lubell; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
