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Sudan paramilitary used mass graves to conceal war crimes: ICC deputy prosecutor

Sudan paramilitary used mass graves to conceal war crimes: ICC deputy prosecutor

by AFP Staff Writers
United Nations, United States (AFP) Jan 19, 2026

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces carried out mass killings in Darfur and attempted to conceal them with mass graves, the International Criminal Court's deputy prosecutor said on Monday.

In a briefing to the UN Security Council, Nazhat Shameem Khan said it was the "assessment of the office of the prosecutor that war crimes and crimes against humanity" had been committed in the RSF's takeover of the city of El-Fasher in October.

"Our work has been indicative of mass killing events and attempts to conceal crimes through the establishment of mass graves," Khan said in a video address, citing audio and video evidence as well as satellite imagery.

Since April 2023, a civil war between the Sudanese army and the RSF has killed tens of thousands, displaced 11 million and created the world's largest displacement and hunger crisis.

Reports of mass killings, sexual violence, abductions and looting emerged in the wake of the RSF's sweep of El-Fasher, which was the army's last holdout position in the Darfur region.

Both warring sides have been accused of atrocities throughout the war.

Footage reviewed by the ICC, Khan said, showed RSF fighters detaining, abusing and executing civilians in El-Fasher, then celebrating the killings and "desecrating corpses".

According to Khan, the material matched testimony gathered from affected communities, while submissions from civil society groups and other partners had further corroborated the evidence.

The atrocities in El?Fasher, she added, mirror those documented in the West Darfur capital of El?Geneina in 2023, where UN experts determined the RSF killed between 10,000 and 15,000 people, mostly from the Massalit tribe.

She said a picture was emerging of "appalling organised, widespread mass criminality".

"It will continue until this conflict and the sense of impunity that fuels it are stopped," she added.

Khan also issued a renewed call for Sudanese authorities to "work with us seriously" to ensure the surrender of all individuals subject to outstanding warrants, including former longtime president Omar al?Bashir, former ruling party chairman Ahmed Haroun and ex?defence minister Abdul Raheem Mohammed Hussein.

She said Haroun's arrest in particular should be "given priority".

Haroun faces 20 counts of crimes against humanity and 22 war-crimes charges for his role in recruiting the Janjaweed militia, which carried out ethnic massacres in Darfur in the 2000s and later became the RSF.

He escaped prison in 2023 and has since reappeared rallying support for the Sudanese army.

Khan spoke to the UN Security Council via video link after being denied a visa to attend in New York due to sanctions in place against her by the United States.

Sudan paramilitary forces say regret deadly Chad border clash
Port Sudan, Sudan (AFP) Jan 19, 2026 - Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces expressed regret on Monday over what they described as "unintentional" clashes with Chadian troops along the border, after Chad said seven of its soldiers were killed in the incident.

In a statement on its official Telegram channel, the RSF said the clashes "resulted from an unintentional mistake during field operations" targeting forces from the Sudanese army who had entered from Chadian territory "to stir discord and then fled back" into Chad.

Sudan has been gripped by conflict since April 2023. Fighting between the army and the RSF has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced 11 million.

Around one million Sudanese refugees have fled to Chad, according to the United Nations.

The RSF said it respected Chad's sovereignty and internationally recognised borders and was committed to "continuing ongoing investigations" and "taking the necessary measures" to hold those responsible accountable.

Chad's government had earlier blamed the RSF for the violence.

Government spokesman Gassim Cherif told a news conference that armed fighters from Sudan had crossed into Chad on Thursday, prompting a clash when Chadian troops ordered them to leave.

A government official later told AFP that the Sudanese fighters were "RSF elements".

Sudan's army has repeatedly accused the United Arab Emirates of supplying weapons to the RSF and hiring mercenaries routed through Chad, Libya, Kenya or Somalia -- claims denied by Abu Dhabi.

Border tensions have risen since October, when the RSF seized El-Fasher, the army's last stronghold in Darfur, prompting international condemnation over reports of mass killings, summary executions and systematic rape.

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