2023-07-13 19:19:00
Effects of fighting in Darfur
Sudan
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, informed the UN Security Council that he had opened an investigation into the events that have taken place since the outbreak of fighting between the army and the Rapid Support Forces on April 15.
Posted on: July 13, 2023: 11:19 PM GST Last updated: July 14, 2023: 12:21 AM GST
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court announced Thursday evening the opening of a new investigation into war crimes in Sudan, noting that the current conflict is of “great concern”.
The office of Prosecutor Karim Khan told the UN Security Council that it had “opened an investigation into the events that took place in the context of the current hostilities,” referring to the battles that erupted from April 15 between the army and the Rapid Support Forces.
Khan said he was investigating allegations of war crimes and new crimes once morest humanity committed in the Darfur region of western Sudan during the current conflict that has killed and displaced thousands.
Sudanese who fled to Chad to escape the fighting
Khan told the Security Council that fighting between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Security Forces spread to Darfur, where war crimes and crimes once morest humanity were committed in 2003. He said history may repeat itself.
In 2005, the Security Council referred the situation in Darfur to the International Criminal Court, and Khan said the court “still has a mandate under this procedure to investigate crimes.” He added that people in the vast area live in fear for their lives because of the conflict.
Khan said he was “closely following reports of extrajudicial killings, burning of homes and markets, looting in El Geneina, West Darfur, and killing and displacement of civilians in North Darfur and elsewhere across Darfur.”
In his report to the Security Council, the Prosecutor confirmed the occurrence of a “wide range of communications” related to war crimes and crimes once morest humanity supposed in Sudan since the start of the recent battles, stressing that reports of sexual violence, especially “alleged campaigns of mass rape” are at the core of the new investigation.
The smoke of battle over Khartoum
Khan considered in his report that the risk of new war crimes, especially in Darfur, is greater due to “the clear disregard, which dates back to a long time, by the concerned parties, including the government of Sudan, of their obligations.”
The report indicated that a deepening of the current violence and suffering across Sudan was to be expected, and said that it “stems from the fundamental failure of the leadership in Sudan to recognize that justice and the justice process are fundamental pillars on which the foundations of peace can be built.”
The Prosecutor confirmed that his office is “unable at this time to enter Sudan due to the security situation,” but said that the office maintains plans to strengthen the field presence in the country “when possible.”
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