ICC Marks Breakthrough in Sudan War Crimes Probe

Sun Sep 06 2026 02:04:46 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

The International Criminal Court claims concrete evidence linking the Rapid Support Forces to killings in Darfur, including the deadly assault on el-Fasher.

The ICC’s deputy chief prosecutor announced a breakthrough in linking RSF leaders to war crimes in el‑Fasher and el‑Geneina. With witness testimony, photographs, and forensic data now linked to high‑ranking commanders, the court is poised to pursue charges. The evidence could hold the group, long accused of massacres, accountable for atrocities that killed more than 6,000 civilians. The investigation also revives earlier cases, including the conviction of a former militia figure. The new findings underline the court’s ongoing effort to bring justice to Darfur’s refugees.

International Criminal Court Reaches Breakthrough in Sudan Probe

The ICC’s deputy chief prosecutor, Nazhat Shameem Khan, told the BBC that the court now possesses concrete evidence linking the leaders of Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to recent war‑crime atrocities in the Darfur region.

The evidence centers on alleged massacres in the cities of el‑Fasher and el‑Geneina, where tens of thousands fled when the RSF seized control in October 2023. The United Nations estimates that more than 6,000 people were killed in el‑Fasher alone.

While the RSF has denied that the killings were ethnically motivated, it has rejected the scale of the violence and insisted that some violations occurred.

Khan said the court’s breakthrough comes from a combination of witness testimony, video footage, photographs and forensic analysis that collectively link specific RSF commanders to the crimes. She cautioned that while charges may take time to materialise, the ICC is now well positioned to pursue them.

The ICC, headquartered in The Hague, has been investigating Darfur war crimes for more than two decades. Historically it has secured seven arrests and taken six separate cases to trial. Among those charged is former Sudanese president Omar al‑Bashir, who remains at large after a 2019 coup.

This latest progress reaffirms the court’s effort to deliver justice to refugees displaced by the conflict, many of whom were still living in camps in eastern Chad when Khan visited.