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Alleged Janjaweed Leader Denies Darfur Atrocities at War Crimes Court

A handout photo made available by the International Criminal Court (ICC-CPI) shows Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (aka Ali Kushayb) attending the opening of his war crimes trial before Trial Chamber I at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, the Netherlands, 05 April 2022. (ICC CPI Handout)
A handout photo made available by the International Criminal Court (ICC-CPI) shows Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (aka Ali Kushayb) attending the opening of his war crimes trial before Trial Chamber I at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, the Netherlands, 05 April 2022. (ICC CPI Handout)
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Alleged Janjaweed Leader Denies Darfur Atrocities at War Crimes Court

A handout photo made available by the International Criminal Court (ICC-CPI) shows Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (aka Ali Kushayb) attending the opening of his war crimes trial before Trial Chamber I at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, the Netherlands, 05 April 2022. (ICC CPI Handout)
A handout photo made available by the International Criminal Court (ICC-CPI) shows Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (aka Ali Kushayb) attending the opening of his war crimes trial before Trial Chamber I at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, the Netherlands, 05 April 2022. (ICC CPI Handout)

A man accused of leading Sudan's feared Janjaweed militia pleaded not guilty to dozens of war crimes charges on Tuesday, at the start of the International Criminal Court's first trial over the Darfur conflict.

Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman is charged with overseeing thousands of pro-government Janjaweed fighters during the peak of fighting from 2003-2004 and being responsible for atrocities including murder, rape, pillaging and torture.

"I am innocent of all of these charges," the septuagenarian told judges after the charges were read out at the start of his case.

Abd-Al-Rahman voluntarily surrendered to The Hague-based court in June 2020.

He has regularly denied the charges and his lawyers have argued in earlier stages of the proceedings he was not the Janjaweed militia leader also known as Ali Kushayb.

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said the trial was a momentous day for those in Sudan who had been waiting for justice for nearly two decades, likening their wait to a fast.

Referencing the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, Khan said the trial was "an Iftar (breaking of the fast) of sorts for the millions of Sudanese throughout the world that have been yearning for this day to come."

The trial comes amid what humanitarian groups say is an upsurge of inter-communal violence in Darfur since the end of the United Nations and African Union peacekeeping mission there.

Decades after the worst of the fighting, 1.6 million people are still internally displaced in Darfur, the United Nations estimates.

Darfur's conflict first erupted when mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms against Sudan's government, accusing it of marginalizing the remote western territory.

Sudan's then government mobilized militias, known as the Janjaweed, to crush the revolt, unleashing a wave of violence that Washington and some activists said amounted to genocide.

Abd-Al-Rahman has been accused of 31 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity and could face up to life imprisonment if convicted.

Prosecutors say he was a key Janjaweed leader that the government of Sudan relied upon and who participated knowingly and willingly in crimes.

They dismissed earlier statements by Abd-Al-Rahman that he is not Ali Kushayb.

"Witness after witness saw him, heard him, recognized him. Witness after witness knew Mr. Abd-Al-Rahman from before. This is - the prosecution says - a strong case," Khan said.

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Israel Seeks to Maintain Areas of Control and Influence in Syrian Territory

Military mobility of Israeli army continues on the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams region of Golan Heights in Syria on December 19, 2024 (Anadolu Agency)
Military mobility of Israeli army continues on the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams region of Golan Heights in Syria on December 19, 2024 (Anadolu Agency)
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Israel Seeks to Maintain Areas of Control and Influence in Syrian Territory

Military mobility of Israeli army continues on the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams region of Golan Heights in Syria on December 19, 2024 (Anadolu Agency)
Military mobility of Israeli army continues on the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams region of Golan Heights in Syria on December 19, 2024 (Anadolu Agency)

Israel plans to maintain areas of “control” (occupation) and “influence” (intelligence) in Syrian territory, according to a new operational concept that security officials developed for the new reality in Syria that emerged following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Senior officials in Israel said that the country would need to maintain a 15 km operational perimeter within Syrian territory, where the Israeli army would maintain a presence to ensure that allies of the new regime couldn’t launch missiles toward the Golan Heights, according to Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper.
They also noted the necessity of a “sphere of influence” extending 60 km into Syria, under Israeli intelligence control, to monitor and prevent potential threats from developing.
The new operational concept came a few days after Israeli officials confirmed that their forces will not withdraw from the border buffer zone and the Syrian side of Mount Hermon.
Last week, the Kan public broadcaster said in an unsourced report that the new Syrian leadership has asked the US to pressure Israel to withdraw from the buffer zone.
Israeli officials told Kan that they have received no official request on the matter, adding that the Israeli army’s presence at and across the border is necessary to protect its security.
Last month, just hours after factions of the Syrian opposition swept president Bashar al-Assad from power, Israel captured the buffer zone, which was created following the Yom Kippur War of 1967. They also seized the Syrian side of Mount Hermon.
During a visit to Mount Hermon last month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that his troops would remain stationed inside Syria “until another arrangement can be found that guarantees Israel’s security.”
Also, Israel has carried out hundreds of attacks across Syria, saying the strikes were aimed at keeping military weapons away from extremists.
According to Yedioth Ahronoth, an Israeli official said that while Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria's de facto leader, had sent messages to Israel claiming that his forces weren’t seeking conflict, Israel remained skeptical. “This might hold true for a year, two years, maybe even 10 or 20”, he said.
“But no one can guarantee that eventually, they won’t turn against us – and these are highly dangerous people. (Ahmed) Al-Sharaa’s current goal is to lift sanctions on Syria to bring in foreign funds. But in the long run, Israel must maintain a control zone and a sphere of influence in Syria,” the official said.
He also expressed hope that Israel would receive full backing against threats from Syria and Lebanon after the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump on January 20.
“In the meantime, we’ll have to remain there, ensuring a 15-km missile-free zone under our control, as well as a 60-km sphere of influence, to prevent threats from developing. We’re building an operational concept for this new reality,” he said.
Israel was also concerned about the potential entrenchment of Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Syria, seemingly ignored by al-Sharaa, according to the newspaper.
“We won’t allow their establishment in Syria just as we prevented Iran’s foothold there,” the official said.
“We estimate that al-Sharaa prefers to keep them there so they can act against Israel, giving him plausible deniability,” he added.
These remarks came while Israeli officials were reportedly astounded by what they described as the West's “blindness” toward the regime of Ahmad al-Sharaa, according to Yedioth Ahronoth.