International Criminal Court has "concrete evidence" linking RSF leaders to war crimes in Darfur, Sudan

"The International Criminal Court (ICC) has "concrete evidence" linking leaders of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to recent war crimes in the Sudanese state of Darfur, the ICC's deputy chief prosecutor says.

Nazhat Shameem Khan told the BBC the ICC had reached a "breakthrough" in its investigation into the massacres of civilians in the cities of el-Fasher and el-Geneina." Read full story.

From BBC News

By Thomas Mukhwana

Africa correspondent

Published Thursday 09 July 2025 - full copy:

International court tells BBC of breakthrough in Sudan war crimes probe

IMAGE SOURCE, AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES 

Image caption, Tens of thousands of people fled el-Fasher after the city was seized by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF)

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has "concrete evidence" linking leaders of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to recent war crimes in the Sudanese state of Darfur, the ICC's deputy chief prosecutor says.

Nazhat Shameem Khan told the BBC the ICC had reached a "breakthrough" in its investigation into the massacres of civilians in the cities of el-Fasher and el-Geneina.

"It may take time for justice to develop, to be brought to the court, but we will get there," Khan said, adding that RSF leaders have also been linked to crimes against humanity.

The siege and takeover of el-Fasher marked one of the bloodiest episodes in the ongoing war between the RSF and Sudan's army.

More than 6,000 people were killed in el-Fasher as the RSF seized the city in October last year, the United Nations says, while the paramilitary group is accused of carrying out a similar massacre in el-Geneina.

The group has repeatedly denied carrying out widespread killings anywhere in Darfur.

Khan said: "We have now found concrete evidence that links what is happening on the ground through linkage evidence to specific persons in leadership mode."

However, she did not give a timeline on when charges might be brought against those responsible for the atrocities in the war, which began in April 2023.

"We cannot say how quickly or how long it's going to take," she said.

"But we can say that progress has been significant and that we have achieved a breakthrough."

The ICC, based in the Dutch city of The Hague, is a global court with the power to bring prosecutions for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Khan spoke to the BBC after visiting refugee camps in eastern Chad, where those who had fled the fighting in Darfur told her of the atrocities they had suffered.

Tens of thousands of people were forced to leave their homes in el-Fasher and the UN said the violence there bore the "hallmarks of genocide".

The RSF has denied widespread allegations that killings in the city were ethnically motivated and follow a pattern of the Arab paramilitaries targeting non-Arab populations.

The group insisted the scale of the atrocities had been exaggerated but acknowledged that some violations had occurred in the city.

Shortly after the capture of el-Fasher, RSF leader Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo said the group was investigating any atrocities. The probe is ongoing, the RSF said recently.

The ICC has been investigating allegations of war crimes in Darfur for more than 20 years since the previous round of violence in the 2000s.

"What we see is patterns of offending that in fact were the same patterns of offending 20 years ago when this situation was first referred to us by the Security Council," she said.

Khan said the ICC investigation included witness accounts, testimonials and corroborative evidence such as videos, photographs and forensic evidence.

Previous investigations have led to seven arrests and six separate cases being brought before the court for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Those charged include Sudan's former President Omar al-Bashir.

He remains at large, having been ousted in a coup in 2019. It is believed he is being held in a secure medical facility in Sudan.

Four others face arrest warrants but have not been detained.

Last year, the ICC sentenced one former militia leader to 20 years in prison after he was successfully convicted of 27 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, committed in Darfur from 2003 to 2004.

Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman was a senior figure in the Janjaweed, a government-backed group which targeted Darfuri civilians who were not part of country's majority Arab population.

The Janjaweed was one of the groups which developed into the RSF, a paramilitary force once aligned with Sudan's army, but which it is now fighting.

View original: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9928zr2m5xo

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UK and allies Joint Statement on situation in El Obeid Sudan: Credible signs of an imminent attack by RSF

"We, the Foreign Ministers of like-minded partners (France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, UK), are deeply concerned by reports of a continued assault on El Obeid, despite calls for a halt to the attack and protection of civilians.  

We call on the RSF to halt its attack immediately. Civilians must be able to leave safely, and all parties must ensure rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access. The RSF and the SAF, and their allies, must de-escalate, uphold international humanitarian law, and honour their commitments under the Jeddah Declaration." More.

UK Government response

From: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and The Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP

Dated Tuesday 23 June 2026 - full copy:

UK and allies Joint Statement on the situation in El Obeid

The United Kingdom and E4+deliver a joint statement on the situation in El Obeid, Sudan.

We, the Foreign Ministers of like-minded partners (France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, UK), are deeply concerned by reports of a continued assault on El Obeid, despite calls for a halt to the attack and protection of civilians.  

Last year, the world witnessed with horror the atrocities in El Fasher - crimes that are assessed to bear the “hallmarks of genocide”. We must not allow such failures to be repeated.   

In recent weeks, repeated drone strikes on El Obeid have killed civilians and driven acute shortages of fuel, food and water. With the rainy season fast approaching, humanitarian workers continue to provide life-saving assistance but are being deliberately targeted. 

There are now credible signs of an imminent offensive. This is a critical moment, and the international community must act.  

We call on the RSF to halt its attack immediately. Civilians must be able to leave safely, and all parties must ensure rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access. The RSF and the SAF, and their allies, must de-escalate, uphold international humanitarian law, and honour their commitments under the Jeddah Declaration. 

External support continues to sustain this conflict. We call on those fuelling the conflict to cease, and those with influence must exercise it now to avoid further bloodshed.  

We will continue to work closely at the UN Security Council and with regional and international partners to secure a clear and unified response: the violence must end, civilians must be protected, and those responsible must be held to account. We remain committed to supporting a credible path to peace through the Quintet-led process and call on all parties to engage in good faith.

View original: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-and-allies-joint-statement-on-the-situation-in-el-obeid

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Sudan: Three Years of Conflict and Displacement. More than 11.58 million people were uprooted

Report from International Organization for Migration (IOM)
Dated 15 April 2026 - full copy:

Sudan: Three Years of Conflict and Displacement

Following the start of the conflict on 15 April 2023, Sudan became the largest displacement crisis in the world. Nearly one in three people in Sudan— over 15 million people— were displaced from their homes, either within the country or across borders. Sudan alone accounted for 15 per cent of all internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the world. By January 2025, the crisis reached its peak in terms of displacement: More than 11.58 million people were uprooted inside Sudan—8.85 million driven out by the current conflict, and 2.73 million displaced from earlier conflicts.

This factsheet presents key statistics on displacement and return, based on three years of nationwide data collection from IOM's Displacement Tracking Matrix. 

Key Figures: 15 April 2023 - 15 April 2026

• The number of IDPs more than tripled due to the conflict, increasing by over 200 per cent from 3.8 million IDPs in 2023 to a peak of 11.58 million IDPs in 2025.

• DTM recorded 805 events triggering displacement: On average, there was an event triggering displacement every 1.5 days for over 1,000 days. Some months witnessed as many as 88 incidents.

• An average of approximately 231,779 additional IDPs were displaced each month between April 2023 and the peak of displacement in January 2025.

• In addition to conflict-related displacement, over a quarter million individuals were displaced due to natural hazards (285,135 individuals).

• Displacement spans the entire country: individuals were displaced from every single state and fled to nearly 13,000 locations in 185 localities across all 18 states.

Displacement and Return in April 2026

After three years, the number of displaced people has decreased due to increased return movements. 

• Approximately 8,936,175 IDPs remain in Sudan, a 23 per cent decrease compared to the highest-ever recorded displaced population.

• Despite the recent decrease in IDP figures, displacement remains at historically high levels: the displaced population is still more than double compared to its pre-conflict figures.

• Approximately 350,000 individuals were newly displaced within the last six months, between October 2025 and March 2026. This surge in displacement was driven primarily by increased insecurity across Al Fasher, North Darfur, the Kordofan region, and Blue Nile state.

Nearly 4 million people have now returned home.

• An estimated 3,994,019 individuals have returned to areas of origin across nine states.

• Of these, 83 per cent moved back from internal displacement and 17 per cent returned from locations abroad.

• Sixty per cent of households have returned to damaged homes, including fully collapsed roofs and broken walls or windows.

• The majority of returning families moved back due to improved security (87%), and the majority intend to stay (92%).

View original, graphics, download full report

Period Covered Apr 15 2023 - Apr 15 2026:

https://dtm.iom.int/reports/sudan-three-years-conflict-and-displacement

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Sudan atrocities are 'hallmarks of genocide', UN says

"The world is still failing the people of Sudan," Cooper said. "When the stories started to emerge about the horrors of el-Fasher it should have been a turning point, but the violence is continuing. Today, in the Security Council, the UK as President will make sure the world does not look away." More.

From BBC News
By Barbara Plett Usher
Africa correspondent
Published Thursday 19 February 2026, 9am GMT - full copy:

Sudan atrocities are 'hallmarks of genocide', UN says

IMAGE SOURCE, REUTERS

A UN fact-finding mission has determined that evidence of atrocities carried out during the siege and takeover of the Sudanese city of el-Fasher points to genocide.

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) captured el-Fasher, located in the western region of Darfur, at the end of October after an 18-month blockade.

It was one of the most brutal chapters in Sudan's nearly three-year civil war and triggered widespread international outrage.

This is the closest the UN has come to declaring that genocide is being carried out by RSF fighters in Darfur during the current conflict. The RSF has not commented on the report but has denied previous such accusations.

"The body of evidence we collected — including the prolonged siege, starvation and denial of humanitarian assistance, followed by mass killings, rape, torture and enforced disappearance, systematic humiliation and perpetrators' own declarations - leaves only one reasonable inference," said fact-finding mission expert Mona Rishmawi. "The RSF acted with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, the Zaghawa and Fur communities in El-Fasher. These are the hallmarks of genocide."

The report concludes that at least three underlying acts of genocide were committed, including killing members of a protected ethnic group; causing serious bodily and mental harm; and deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the group's physical destruction in whole or in part.

Calling the findings "truly horrific", UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said she would take the report's conclusions to the UN Security Council on Thursday.

In a statement she said there must be international criminal investigations to ensure accountability for perpetrators and justice for victims, and an end to the arms flow feeding the conflict.

Sudan's civil war erupted in April 2023 out of a power struggle between the regular army and the RSF over how and whether the paramilitaries would integrate into the security forces. It evolved into a country-wide conflict fuelled by longstanding local grievances and ethnic divisions.

In the Darfur region, Arab militias that form the backbone of the RSF have targeted non-Arabs they see as enemies, using savage tactics also employed some 20 years ago. At that time, they massacred hundreds of thousands of Darfuris from indigenous African ethnic groups, employed by the country's then authoritarian leader Omar al-Bashir to put down local rebellions.

IMAGE SOURCE, REUTERS. Image caption, During the long siege of el-Fasher, this school where people were sheltering was shelled

The report says the city was deliberately starved and destroyed during the long siege, which systematically weakened the "targeted population" and left them defenceless against the extreme violence that followed.

"Thousands of persons, particularly the Zaghawa, were killed, raped or disappeared during three days of absolute horror," it says, as RSF troops failed to distinguish between Zaghawa civilians and the armed groups defending the city.

Investigators described RSF conduct in el-Fasher as an aggravation of earlier patterns but on a far more lethal scale, noting that this demonstrates the failure to prevent the atrocities despite clear warning signs. They say without prevention and accountability, the risk of "more genocidal acts remains serious and ongoing".

The mandate issued by the Human Rights Council in Geneva called on the investigative team to "identify, where possible" suspected perpetrators in a bid to ensure they are "held accountable".

The report names RSF Leader Lt Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (widely known as Hemedti) and spokesperson Lt Col Al-Fatih Al-Qurashi, citing the way they publicly claimed and celebrated the operation.

It notes that General Hemedti acknowledged some "violations" had occurred during the takeover of the city but that while he described el-Fasher as a "catastrophe", he justified the assault as necessary.

The RSF leader also issued instructions for his fighters not to harm civilians or kill prisoners, and he promised investigations. But investigators say the RSF did not respond to the mission's request to clarify the steps it had taken, or any other questions.

"The scale, coordination, and public endorsement of the operation by the senior Rapid Support Forces leadership point to a planned and organised operation executed through an established hierarchy and structure, rather than isolated acts," the UN mission said.

The report names one one notorious commander known as "Abu Lulu" who was arrested after viral footage of his brutality surfaced, but said the RSF had provided no information regarding any judicial proceedings.

It also says that despite their best efforts, the UN mission did not receive cooperation from Sudanese authorities. Yvette Cooper called obstructions "from both warring parties... shameful and unacceptable".

The mission's mandate did not include an investigation into the role of external actors who may be supporting the RSF.

But crucially the report notes that the RSF's military campaign was reinforced by foreign mercenaries equipped with "advanced weaponry and communications systems".

It says investigators are engaging with several states regarding "credible information" that they are involved and will report on this matter in the future.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is widely reported to be the main backer of the RSF, although it continues to forcefully deny this, despite extensive evidence from international investigations that the UN has previously described as credible.

Abu Dhabi's role came under increased scrutiny after the el-Fasher massacre, but there was no public pressure on the Emiratis from the UN, the US or the UK.

The investigators called on the international community to fully enforce the existing arms embargo on Darfur and expand it to the rest of the country; to prevent the transfer of weapons and other support to parties implicated in serious violations; to ensure accountability through targeted sanctions; to fully cooperate with the International Criminal Court; and to consider the establishment of a judicial mechanism working in tandem with it.

Cooper said it was important that the fact-finding mission planned to conduct further investigations into reported breaches of the arms embargo and agreed that it should be extended and enforced.

She said she planned to highlight the systematic and widespread sexual violence which she calls "a war against women's bodies".

"Most important of all we need global action and pressure in pursuit of a ceasefire, and essential humanitarian access with support for survivors," she said.

The UN Security Council session is aimed at pushing for progress on a humanitarian truce, which has been elusive despite the enormous civilian suffering. The warring parties both frame the conflict as an existential battle and are able to continue fighting with increasingly sophisticated weapons supplied by their foreign backers.

"The world is still failing the people of Sudan," Cooper said. "When the stories started to emerge about the horrors of el-Fasher it should have been a turning point, but the violence is continuing. Today, in the Security Council, the UK as President will make sure the world does not look away."

More on this story

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'I saw them driving over injured people' - the terrifying escape from war in Sudan
Published 30 November 2025

Sudan's RSF trying to cover up mass killings in el-Fasher, researchers say
Published 16 December 2025

Sudanese city had 6,000 killed in three days, UN says
Published 5 days ago

View original: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cpqw74d81jqo

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