International Criminal Court opens investigation into possible new war crimes in Darfur

The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced on Thursday the opening of a new investigation into war crimes in the Sudanese region of Darfur, calling for preventing "history from repeating itself."

Karim Khan made this announcement in a report to the United Nations Security Council at a time when Sudan is experiencing turmoil due to a power struggle between two generals.

Darfur, where the civil war in the early 2000s claimed the lives of around 300,000 people, has not been spared from atrocities. The United Nations stated on Thursday that at least 87 bodies, believed to have been killed last month by the Rapid Support Forces and their allies, have been buried in a mass grave in Darfur.

The Security Council referred the situation in this region to the ICC in 2005, which issued an arrest warrant against former President Omar al-Bashir on charges including genocide.

Karim Khan stated, "We risk (...) allowing history to repeat itself; the same horrific story that led this Council to refer the situation in Darfur to the ICC in 2005."

He emphasized before the Security Council that "the people of Darfur have been living in a state of uncertainty and suffering, with the wounds of the conflict, for nearly two decades."

His office, which has jurisdiction over Darfur, has opened an investigation into the incidents that have occurred in the context of the current hostilities, according to his report, which referred to a "wide range" of information related to war crimes and alleged crimes against humanity since the start of the clashes in April.

The Prosecutor stated, "I want to send a clear message to every combatant, every commander, and every soldier who possesses a weapon and believes they can do as they please, that deliberately attacking civilians and attacking their homes and livelihoods (...) are crimes prohibited by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court."

He addressed looting, house burning, and extrajudicial executions, saying that he has given "instructions" to his office "to prioritize crimes against children, sexual crimes, and gender-based violence."

Since April 15, the Sudanese army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has been engaged in a war against General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, the commander of the Rapid Support Forces.

During a summit in Egypt on Thursday, the seven neighboring countries of Sudan called on international donors to provide assistance to accommodate over 700,000 refugees who have fled the war in Sudan.

The United States praised the ICC's new investigation. Spokesperson for the US State Department, Matthew Miller, stated in a statement that "the atrocities and violence in Darfur deserve accountability," pointing fingers at the Rapid Support Forces and their allies for "targeted ethnic killings" in western Darfur, as well as the issue of the bodies found in a mass grave.

Karim Khan stated that the absence of justice for the crimes committed in Darfur during the early years of the century has "sowed the seeds for this latest cycle of violence and suffering."

Even before the outbreak of the recent round of fighting, there has been "further regression in the cooperation of the Sudanese authorities," according to his report.

This accusation was rejected on Thursday by Sudan's Ambassador to the United Nations, Harith al-Harath Mohammed al-Khamees, who affirmed that his government "has always cooperated with the International Criminal Court."

 

 

 

 

AFP