Amnesty: Extensive War Crimes In Sudan's 'Unimaginable Horror'

File - Sudanese refugees who fled the conflict in Sudan gather Monday, July 10, 2023, at the Zabout refugee Camp in Goz Beida, Chad. (Pierre Honnorat/WFP via AP, File)
File - Sudanese refugees who fled the conflict in Sudan gather Monday, July 10, 2023, at the Zabout refugee Camp in Goz Beida, Chad. (Pierre Honnorat/WFP via AP, File)
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Amnesty: Extensive War Crimes In Sudan's 'Unimaginable Horror'

File - Sudanese refugees who fled the conflict in Sudan gather Monday, July 10, 2023, at the Zabout refugee Camp in Goz Beida, Chad. (Pierre Honnorat/WFP via AP, File)
File - Sudanese refugees who fled the conflict in Sudan gather Monday, July 10, 2023, at the Zabout refugee Camp in Goz Beida, Chad. (Pierre Honnorat/WFP via AP, File)

Extensive war crimes are being committed by both sides in the conflict that has been raging in Sudan since April, Amnesty International said on Thursday.

The Britain-based human rights group said in a report that the crimes committed by the warring parties, led by two feuding generals, included sexual violence against girls as young as 12 and the indiscriminate targeting of civilians.

Since April 15, regular army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has been locked in a war with his former deputy, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.

"Civilians throughout Sudan are suffering unimaginable horror every single day as the Rapid Support Forces and Sudanese Armed Forces recklessly vie for control of territory," said Amnesty secretary general Agnes Callamard.

"The RSF and SAF, as well as their affiliated armed groups, must end their targeting of civilians and guarantee safe passage for those seeking safety," she added, AFP reported.

Burhan came to power, with Daglo as his number two, in an October 2021 coup that derailed a fragile transition to civilian rule after the military's ouster of long-ruling autocrat Omar al-Bashir in April 2019 following a popular uprising.

But the two men then fell out in a bitter feud.

The fighting -- concentrated in Khartoum and the western region of Darfur -- has killed more than 3,900 people, according to the NGO ACLED and displaced more than 3.3 million, according to the UN.

"Extensive war crimes are being committed in Sudan as the conflict... ravages the country," Amnesty said, adding there were "mass civilian casualties in both deliberate and indiscriminate attacks by the warring parties".

It said men, women and children have been caught in the crossfire as both sides launch frequent attacks in densely populated residential neighbourhoods, often using explosive weapons with wide area effects.

Amnesty said scores of women and girls, some as young as 12, have been subjected to sexual violence, including rape, with some held for days in conditions of sexual slavery.

In most of the cases documented by Amnesty International, survivors said the perpetrators were fighters of the RSF or its Arab militia allies.

For its report, Amnesty said it had interviewed more than 180 people, primarily in eastern Chad where refugees from Darfur have fled, or remotely via secure calls.

The group said it had put its allegations to the army and the RSF, who had both responded "claiming adherence to international law and accusing the other side of violations".



Joint Incident Assessment Team Refutes Four Claims Against Coalition Operations in Yemen

The Yemen Incident Assessment Team reviews a number of allegations during a press conference in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat). 
The Yemen Incident Assessment Team reviews a number of allegations during a press conference in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat). 
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Joint Incident Assessment Team Refutes Four Claims Against Coalition Operations in Yemen

The Yemen Incident Assessment Team reviews a number of allegations during a press conference in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat). 
The Yemen Incident Assessment Team reviews a number of allegations during a press conference in Riyadh (Asharq Al-Awsat). 

The Joint Incident Assessment Team (JIAT) in Yemen has refuted four allegations leveled against the Coalition to Support Legitimacy, related to incidents in the provinces of Sanaa, Saada, and Abyan. The findings were presented during a press conference in Riyadh on Wednesday, attended by international media and diplomatic representatives. The team provided satellite imagery, coordinates, and on-site analysis to support its conclusions.

One of the claims addressed was from the Yemeni Human Rights Commission, alleging that Coalition airstrikes targeted the Abyan governorate building in Zinjibar on June 4, 2015. JIAT said field investigations revealed damage consistent with ground fighting, not airstrikes. A review of Coalition air mission records on the date and surrounding days confirmed no operations in the Abyan area, while satellite imagery showed no signs of aerial targeting.

Another claim, issued by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on January 18, 2022, accused the Coalition of partially damaging an emergency ward at a hospital in the Al-Sawad area of Sanhan district, Sanaa, during a January 13 airstrike. JIAT found the area hosts the Al-Sawad military camp and the nearby “Model 48 Hospital,” a site listed on the Coalition’s no-strike list.

Intelligence indicated that the camp housed Houthi weapons and drone facilities. A precision strike was carried out at 1:20 a.m. using guided munitions to minimize collateral damage. Satellite imagery confirmed the strike hit its intended target, with the nearest impact point located 210 meters from the hospital—well outside the blast radius.

Regarding a report of a missile allegedly fired from the border near a home in the village of Al-Malahidh, Haydan district, Saada province on February 23, 2020, JIAT confirmed no Coalition artillery or rocket activity occurred in the area. No evidence or impact data supported the claim.

A final allegation stated that an airstrike hit a farm in Al-Watada, Khawlan district, Sanaa, at 1:00 p.m. on March 3, 2021. JIAT said the claim lacked specific coordinates, and a review of operational records showed no air missions in the area during that time frame.

In all four cases, JIAT concluded there was no evidence to support the claims of unlawful Coalition actions.