{"id":20132199,"date":"2026-05-11T14:25:28","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T12:25:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/?p=20132199"},"modified":"2026-05-11T14:28:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T12:28:10","slug":"african-human-rights-commission-urges-further-probe-into-chemical-weapons-use-in-sudan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/en\/all-news\/article\/african-human-rights-commission-urges-further-probe-into-chemical-weapons-use-in-sudan","title":{"rendered":"African human rights commission urges further probe into ‘chemical weapons use in Sudan’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Participants at the Forum on the Participation of NGOs in the African Commission on Human and Peoples\u2019 Rights (ACHPR), held in Banjul, the capital of Gambia, from May 7 to 9, 2026, during the Commission\u2019s 87th Ordinary Session, have called on the African Commission to adopt a resolution urging Sudan to cooperate fully with international investigations into alleged chemical weapons use.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a statement released at the close of the forum on May 9, 2026, in Banjul, the participants set out a draft resolution and recommendations calling for accountability and unrestricted access for international investigators, including the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The statement reads that Sudan is \u201clegally bound to fully and effectively implement the provisions of these instruments, and respect and promote the human and peoples\u2019 rights set therein without discrimination,\u201d referring to its obligations under the African Charter on Human and Peoples\u2019 Rights and other international treaties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It further states that Sudan is \u201ca state party to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction,\u201d and is therefore \u201cunder binding obligations to refrain from developing, producing, possessing, transferring or using chemical weapons.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The forum expressed concern over reports of chemical weapons use in Sudan and noted diplomatic requests in 2025 from Chad, Benin and Mauritania supported by Guinea Bissau seeking clarification through the OPCW.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It also referenced a 10 July 2025 statement from Sudan\u2019s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in which the authorities said they \u201ccategorically and fundamentally\u00a0reject the use of chemical weapons<\/a>\u201d and reaffirmed their commitment to international obligations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Participants urged the African Commission to act, calling on it to \u201cwelcome Sudan\u2019s commitment to address the accusations about the use of chemical weapons with seriousness and transparency,\u201d while noting the establishment of a national investigative committee in July 2025 and stressing that \u201cthe Committee should publish its findings without delay.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The statement also called for full cooperation with international mechanisms, stating that Sudan must \u201callow the OPCW to deploy technical teams in the country and ensure that any investigation is conducted in a thorough, transparent, independent and timely manner.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The forum further pressed Sudan to respond to clarification requests from African states and comply fully with its disarmament obligations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It comes amid continued international scrutiny over alleged chemical weapons use. A\u00a0France 24<\/a><\/em> investigation published in October found that the Sudanese Armed Forces allegedly used chlorine gas during two airstrikes on the El Jeili oil refinery northeast of Khartoum and surrounding areas in September 2024, during attempts to retake territory from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report, based on open-source analysis by its Observers team in Paris, cited five chemical weapons experts who said the attacks were consistent with chlorine barrel bombs, a weapon described as deployable only by the Sudanese Armed Forces through aerial delivery. It also reported 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 has also said that recent evidence of chemical weapons use by the Sudanese army aligns with earlier\u00a0United States formal accusations and sanctions<\/a>\u00a0made in May, 2025.<\/p>\n