UN Report: Violations Committed by Warring Parties in Sudan Could Amount to War Crimes

Army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (left) and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) in 2019 (AFP)
Army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (left) and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) in 2019 (AFP)
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UN Report: Violations Committed by Warring Parties in Sudan Could Amount to War Crimes

Army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (left) and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) in 2019 (AFP)
Army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (left) and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) in 2019 (AFP)

Both sides in Sudan's civil war have committed abuses that may amount to war crimes including indiscriminate attacks on civilian sites like hospitals, markets and even camps for the displaced, the UN human rights office said on Friday.
Efforts have so far failed to end the 10-month-old conflict that pits Sudan's regular armed forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
Thousands of people have been killed and some six million forced to flee their homes, making it the country with the largest displaced population in the world.
“Some of these violations would amount to war crimes,” Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in a statement accompanying a report. “The guns must be silenced, and civilians must be protected.”
The US has already formally determined that the warring parties have committed war crimes and said the RSF and allied militias were involved in ethnic cleansing in West Darfur.
Both sides have said they would investigate reports of killings and abuses and prosecute any fighters found to be involved.
The United Nations report is based on interviews with over 300 victims and witnesses as well as footage and satellite imagery.
It says that sometimes those fleeing for their lives or displaced by the violence became victims of explosive weapons attacks.
Women and Children
In one incident, dozens of displaced people were killed when their camp in Zalingei, Darfur was shelled by the RSF between Sept. 14-17, the report said. Some 26 civilians, mostly women and children, were killed on Aug. 22 by shells reportedly fired by the Sudanese Armed Forces while sheltering under a bridge.
The report also says the RSF had adopted a military strategy of using human shields, citing testimonies of victims involved.
It describes incidents in the capital Khartoum where dozens of individuals were arrested and placed near RSF military posts to deter air strikes from Sudanese fighter jets.
UN investigators have so far documented cases of sexual violence affecting 118 people, including one women who was detained and repeatedly gang-raped for weeks. Many of the rapes were committed by RSF members, the report said.
The war in Sudan erupted last April over disputes about the powers of the army and the RSF under an internationally-backed plan for a political transition towards civilian rule and elections.
Resumption of Jeddah Talks
Separately, sources revealed on Friday that negotiations between the army and the RSF will resume through the Jeddah platform early in March.
The sources, who asked not to be identified, told the Arab World Press that the two sides will discuss in Jeddah the document signed last month in the Bahraini capital, Manama, between the army representative General Shamseldin Kabbashi and the RSF representative General Abdelrahim Dagalo, a brother of RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.
The document includes a declaration of principles including maintaining the unity of Sudan and its military. It also agreed on the arrest of Muslim Brotherhood leaders, including those wanted by the International Criminal Court, and the dismantling of the Islamic Movement regime.
The sources expressed concerns that the Muslim Brotherhood leadership would obstruct the negotiations, noting that such attempts were made in previous rounds of talks.
Since May 2023, Saudi Arabia and the US co-facilitated talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, between representatives of the Sudanese army and the RSF.
Entebbe Workshop
Also, the sources told the Arab World Press that the Rapid Support Forces held a workshop in the Ugandan city of Entebbe, from February 15 to 20.
The workshop was attended by RSF members who participated in the Jeddah Platform talks, in addition to all members of the Commander’s advisory bureau, the tribal communities in the regions of Kordofan and Darfur fighting alongside the RSF, and media activists.



Israeli Army Reaches Outskirts of Litani River in Southern Lebanon

An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)
An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)
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Israeli Army Reaches Outskirts of Litani River in Southern Lebanon

An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)
An Israeli tank loaded onto a truck being transported to the border with southern Lebanon in the Upper Galilee (EPA)

Israeli forces have launched their largest ground incursion into southern Lebanon since the conflict began, reaching the outskirts of the Litani River near Deirmimas.

They entered the town’s edges in an effort to separate Nabatieh from Marjayoun and prepare for an attack on the town of Taybeh from the west and north.

This move also aimed to neutralize Taybeh hill, which overlooks the Khiam plain, where Israel plans to extend its operations and capture the city of Khiam.

Lebanese media reported that Israel set up a checkpoint at the Deirmimas junction, cutting off Marjayoun from Nabatieh.

They also blocked the western entrance to Deirmimas near a fuel station using earth mounds, with Israeli military vehicles stationed there. Reports also said Israeli forces prevented UNIFIL and the Lebanese army from passing toward Marjayoun.

Lebanese sources following the battle in the south reported that Israeli forces advanced five kilometers west from the town of Kfar Kila, moving through olive groves. This advance took advantage of the absence of Hezbollah fighters in Christian areas like Qlayaa, Bir al-Muluk, and Deirmimas.

The sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that this allowed Israeli forces to reach the outskirts of the Litani River for the first time since 2006, cutting off Nabatieh from Marjayoun. Israeli artillery had previously targeted this route several times, and drones had carried out strikes there.

Israel supported its ground advance with heavy artillery fire. Lebanese security sources said Israeli artillery targeted hills overlooking Deirmimas throughout Thursday night into Friday, hitting locations like Beaufort Castle, Arnoun, Yihmour, Wadi Zawtar, and Deir Siryan.

This fire typically provides cover for infantry advances. The sources also confirmed that Israeli ground movements were backed by airstrikes and drones for added security.

They speculated the advance followed a route from Kfar Kila through Tall al-Nahas and Bir al-Muluk toward Deirmimas, which is almost empty of residents and has no Hezbollah presence.

Hezbollah fired rockets at Israeli forces in the area, with three statements confirming the targeting of Israeli positions and vehicles near Deirmimas.

Media reports mentioned multiple rocket strikes on Israeli targets in Khiam and near Tall al-Nahas, as well as a guided missile attack on Israeli movements near oil groves close to the Marqos station at Deirmimas’ edge.

A photo shared by Lebanese media showed an Israeli tank behind an exposed hill east of Qlayaa, protected from the west and north. To the south, Israeli forces entered the town of Deirmimas, which overlooks the position.

Military expert Mustafa Asaad said the image, showing a bulldozer behind a tank at the Qlayaa-Marjayoun-Deirmimas junction, suggests that infantry units secured the area—either on foot or in fast vehicles—before entering Deirmimas.

The town’s mayor confirmed to local media that Israeli forces made a “small incursion” into Deirmimas, advancing through olive groves from Kfar Kila.

Hezbollah has stated it does not have military positions in Christian or Druze areas in southern Lebanon, as these communities oppose its presence. Sources close to Hezbollah say this is due to political reasons and security concerns.