Australia sanctions El Burhan and Hemedti over Sudan war and human rights abuses

Australia has imposed targeted sanctions, and travel bans on four Sudanese individuals, including Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) Commander and Transitional Sovereignty Council President Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as ‘Hemedti’, over the ongoing war in Sudan.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced the measures in a statement published by the ministry on Thursday, saying the government had also imposed financial sanctions on the El Bara Bin Malik Brigade.

Among those on the sanctions list are Al-Tijani Al-Tahir Karshoum, the RSF-aligned de facto governor of West Darfur, and RSF field commander Hussein Barsham. Both face financial sanctions and travel bans.

“The RSF and the SAF have committed serious human rights violations and abuses, including attacks on civilians, torture, sexual and gender-based violence, and extrajudicial killings,” Wong said.

“Those responsible for serious human rights violations and abuses must be held to account.”

The sanctions build on measures Australia previously imposed on 13 individuals under the United Nations Security Council’s Sudan sanctions framework.

Under the new measures, dealing with the assets of listed individuals or the El Baraa Bin Malik Brigade without ministerial authorisation is a criminal offence. The four individuals are also barred from entering or remaining in Australia.

Australia said hundreds of thousands of people had been killed and more than 14 million displaced since the war began on 15 April 2023. Almost 34 million people, more than 70 per cent of Sudan’s population, need humanitarian assistance.

Canberra has provided more than $67 million in humanitarian aid to Sudan, supporting food, clean water, shelter, healthcare and protection services.

To ensure sanctions do not obstruct relief efforts, Wong also issued a humanitarian permit allowing specified aid activities that would otherwise be restricted under the sanctions framework.