{"id":20123602,"date":"2025-12-01T18:42:02","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T17:42:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/?p=20123602"},"modified":"2025-12-01T18:42:05","modified_gmt":"2025-12-01T17:42:05","slug":"us-steps-up-pressure-on-sudan-govt-over-chemical-weapons-allegations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/en\/all-news\/article\/us-steps-up-pressure-on-sudan-govt-over-chemical-weapons-allegations","title":{"rendered":"US steps up pressure on Sudan govt over chemical weapons allegations"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Tensions between Washington and the Sudanese government have intensified after the de facto Sudanese government refused to engage with the Quartet, led by the United States, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the UAE, to end the war in Sudan. In response, analyst and political scientist Dr Abdelwahab El Tayeb El Bashir argues that the US has revived allegations of chemical weapons use as a key pressure tool against the Port Sudan administration.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The US State Department\u2019s Bureau of African Affairs said\u00a0in a post on its account on X last week on Wednesday<\/a>, that \u201cthe Government of Sudan must immediately acknowledge its violations, halt any further use of chemical weapons, and fully cooperate with the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It stressed that \u201cany further use of chemical weapons must stop\u201d and reiterated that Washington\u2019s findings were based on a \u201ccareful analysis\u201d carried out earlier this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this year in May<\/a>, the US State Department has sanctioned Sudan, determining that its government violated the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) through the alleged use of chemical weapons, including chlorine gas, during its conflict with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in 2024.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis determination was delivered to Congress today,\u201d\u00a0said Tammy Bruce in her statement<\/a>, spokesperson for the Department, \u201calong with an addendum to the April 15, 2025, Condition 10(C) Report on Compliance with the CWC that finds the Government of Sudan in non-compliance with the CWC, to which it is a party.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sanctions followed in June, restricting US exports to Sudan and blocking access to US government credit. Washington described the use of chemical agents as \u201cunacceptable\u201d and in violation of the CWC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A France 24 investigation<\/a>\u00a0published in October also found that the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) used chlorine gas during two airstrikes on the El Jeili oil refinery northeast of Khartoum and its surroundings in September 2024, while attempting to retake the area from the RSF.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In their report, the Observers team in Paris analysed photos and videos from the sites using open-source techniques. Five chemical weapons experts confirmed that the attacks were consistent with chlorine barrel bombs, a weapon only the SAF can deploy by air.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They also alleged that one chlorine shipment was traced to a Sudanese company importing the chemical from India for \u201cwater purification\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has\u00a0affirmed that recent evidence<\/a>\u00a0of chemical weapons use by the Sudanese army aligns with earlier US allegations in May 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan, head of the Sovereignty Council and commander-in-chief of the SAF, announced\u00a0the formation of a national committee<\/a>\u00a0to investigate US allegations that the SAF used chemical weapons during the ongoing conflict. The committee, announced in May, comprising representatives from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defence and the General Intelligence Service, has been tasked with submitting its findings \u201cimmediately.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Foreign Ministry said the move reflects Sudan\u2019s commitment to international treaties, including the Chemical Weapons Convention, while firmly rejecting what it called baseless US accusations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ministers condemned the sanctions, with Culture and Information Minister Khaled Aleiser dismissing them as \u201cpolitical blackmail and falsification of the facts\u201d and insisting they were unsupported by evidence. But Washington insisted that \u201cstated commitments are not enough\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018US politics and regional pressures\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an interview with Radio Dabanga yesterday, political scientist Dr Abdelwahab El Tayeb El Bashir said the US sanctions carry strong political weight and are linked to the de facto government\u2019s refusal to engage in\u00a0Quartet talks<\/a>, which the RSF and its commander, Lt Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti), have\u00a0already endorsed last week in an announcement<\/a>, with Hemedti calling the ceasefire \u201ca national responsibility.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese sanctions reflect America\u2019s domestic pressures and the interests of its regional allies,\u201d El Bashir said, pointing to countries including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, the UAE, Ethiopia, and Kenya. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He stressed that the sanctions were issued under US law not through the OPCW and are based on intelligence assessments rather than internationally verified evidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

El Bashir argued that Washington has not presented field data such as samples, laboratory analysis, or clear information about where and when the alleged chemical attacks occurred. \u201cThis weakens the legal and international legitimacy of the decision and makes it appear unilateral,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He added that Washington\u2019s aim is partly deterrence, saying that \u201cthe US wants to send a strong message to the Sudanese army and its allies that chemical weapons cross a red line.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The political scientist noted that the sanctions are unlikely to alter the military balance. \u201cThey freeze assets, restrict financial transactions, and impose travel bans, but they do not affect weapons procurement. Their main effect is economic pressure on the government and army to push them towards negotiations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018RSF systematic attacks on healthcare facilities\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A\u00a0Reuters investigation published on Friday<\/a>, found that the RSF has carried out a sustained campaign to dismantle health services in El Fasher, capital of North Darfur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Based on satellite imagery and interviews with doctors and aid workers, the investigation documented at least 130 attacks on health facilities, 71 per cent attributed to RSF, and at least 40 health workers killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medical staff described\u00a0drone strikes<\/a>, executions, and hospitals reduced to ruins. The Saudi Hospital, the city\u2019s last functioning facility, came under near-daily attack. Doctors said they performed surgeries in foxholes and private homes to evade drones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An army official denied that the SAF attacked medical facilities, insisting the army had defended civilians before the RSF seized the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The situation in El Fasher has deteriorated sharply since the\u00a0RSF took control<\/a>\u00a0in late October. Reports have emerged of killings, sexual violence, and mass displacement.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thousands have fled along the so-called \u201cRoad of Death\u201d towards Tawila, 60km away. The UN reports that civilians face extreme hunger, thirst, and repeated abuses<\/a> as they attempt to escape.<\/p>\n