ICC Investigates War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity in Darfur

Strategic Insights -

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is investigating alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Darfur region, where a deepening conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces has led to a humanitarian disaster. Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan told the UN Security Council that there is "reasonable grounds to believe" that both war crimes and crimes against humanity are being committed, with a particular focus on targeted use of sexual violence against women and girls from specific ethnic communities. The ICC is working to document the atrocities through field missions and cooperation with civil society and victims' groups, with a renewed focus on gender crimes.

Key Takeaways:

  • The ICC has "reasonable grounds to believe" that war crimes and crimes against humanity are being committed in Darfur, with a focus on targeted use of sexual violence.
  • The targeted use of sexual violence includes rape, abduction, and gender-based assaults, often directed at women and girls from specific ethnic communities.
  • The ICC has collected over 7,000 items of evidence, including through repeated field missions to refugee camps in Chad.
  • The Court's dedicated gender unit is working to document gender crimes and support victims.
  • The humanitarian situation in Darfur is rapidly deteriorating, with aid convoys being targeted, hospitals bombed, and food and water deliberately withheld.
  • The outbreak of cholera is spreading across conflict zones, with Darfur experiencing cross-border transmission into Chad and South Sudan.
  • The ICC faces formidable obstacles, including obstruction and hostility towards investigators, underfunding, limited cooperation from some States, and difficulties surrounding the arrest and transfer of individuals under ICC warrants.
  • Deputy Prosecutor Khan emphasized the ICC's commitment to justice, pointing to the pending verdict in the trial of Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman as a milestone for accountability.

Statistics:

  • Over 7,000 items of evidence have been collected by the ICC in Darfur.
  • Aid convoys are being targeted, with 5 humanitarians killed in an ambush in North Darfur in early June.
  • Over 40 civilians, including patients and healthcare staff, were killed in airstrikes in West Kordofan.
  • Reports of extortion and diversion of aid in surrounding areas have further compounded the crisis.
  • The outbreak of cholera is spreading across conflict zones, with Darfur experiencing cross-border transmission into Chad and South Sudan.

Sources:

  • United Nations (no date) MIL-OSE United Nations News (http://milnz.co.nz/mil-osi-aggregation/)
  • UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)