{"id":20134836,"date":"2026-07-16T14:13:20","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T12:13:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/?p=20134836"},"modified":"2026-07-16T14:13:25","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T12:13:25","slug":"icc-deputy-prosecutor-investigations-into-el-geneina-and-el-fasher-in-darfur-have-made-progress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dabangasudan.org\/en\/all-news\/article\/icc-deputy-prosecutor-investigations-into-el-geneina-and-el-fasher-in-darfur-have-made-progress","title":{"rendered":"ICC Deputy Prosecutor: \u2018Investigations into El Geneina and El Fasher in Darfur \u2018have made progress\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has announced progress in the investigation of crimes committed in El Geneina and El Fasher and their surrounding areas during Sudan\u2019s ongoing war. She said the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) had failed to cooperate with the Office of the Prosecutor, called for international action to prevent a repeat of the atrocities committed in El Geneina and El Fasher in El Obeid, and urged the Sudanese government to surrender the three remaining fugitives wanted by the court.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Presenting the Prosecutor\u2019s 43rd report to the UN Security Council on Wednesday evening, she said the Office had conducted important interviews with key witnesses concerning crimes committed in El Geneina and El Fasher. Their testimony, she said, had corroborated and deepened the Office\u2019s understanding of the nature and patterns of the crimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said the evidence had become a cornerstone of efforts to link the crimes to senior perpetrators, while also helping to identify a number of victims whose identities had previously been unknown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Deputy Prosecutor said investigators had focused in particular on reviewing material already collected, including audio and visual evidence, as well as identifying and gathering testimony reflecting the broad scale of gender-based crimes and crimes affecting or committed against children. Identifying additional victims and witnesses in relation to those crimes, she added, remains a priority for the Office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said the Office\u2019s further significant progress reinforced the conclusion set out in its previous report that war crimes and crimes against humanity had been committed in both El Geneina and El Fasher. The evidence collected also showed that war crimes had been committed in El Fasher and the surrounding areas, particularly killings and outrages upon personal dignity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ICC Prosecutor announced on 13 July 2023 that the Office had opened an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the context of the fighting in Darfur following the outbreak of violence on 15 April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces, the Rapid Support Forces and allied armed groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gender-based crimes \u2018top priority\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan said the Office had given particular priority to investigating gender-based crimes and crimes committed against children in El Geneina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Internally, the investigation team worked closely with the Office\u2019s Gender and Children Unit to identify victims of gender-based crimes and crimes against children, assess their psychological and social wellbeing, and interview them using a survivor-centred, trauma-informed approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To support this work, investigators consistently relied on dedicated investigation plans for these crimes, integrating them into the Office\u2019s wider investigative strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said the Office continued efforts to identify further individuals, particularly women and children, who possess evidence relating to crimes including persecution, in which people are targeted because of their membership of a particular group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Positive cooperation with the government<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Khan said cooperation from the Sudanese government had remained positive. With the support of the authorities, the Office had deployed a team to Port Sudan, enabling work that helped identify key witnesses. Most requests for assistance had received positive responses, with only a limited number still awaiting replies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By contrast, despite extensive efforts by the Office, the Rapid Support Forces had not responded to requests for cooperation. Khan said such refusal to cooperate with an accountability mechanism established under a UN Security Council mandate was deeply concerning, given the gravity and scale of the allegations of international crimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said meaningful progress in the Darfur cases depended on the execution of the ICC\u2019s outstanding arrest warrants. She called on the Sudanese government to take concrete steps leading to the arrest and surrender of Omar al-Bashir, Ahmed Haroun, and Abdel Raheem Hussein so that judicial proceedings could finally begin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Office also renewed its appeal to individuals and organisations with information relating either to the alleged criminal responsibility or current whereabouts of Bashir, Hussein, or Haroun to come forward. It reminded the Sudanese government that, under UN Security Council Resolution 1593 (2005), it remains under an obligation to cooperate fully with the Court in these proceedings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warning over an attack on El Obeid<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Khan said the Office of the Prosecutor shared the assessment of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights that the reported imminent attack on El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan state, carries a serious risk of further international crimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ICC Appeals Chamber is expected to rule during the first half of 2027 on appeals against both the conviction of Ali Kushayb and his 20-year prison sentence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A hearing on reparations has also been scheduled for 8 September 2026, following submissions by the Trust Fund for Victims, the ICC Registry, the defence, the legal representative of victims and several organisations authorised to participate as amicus curiae<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radio Dabanga awareness campaign<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To support the Office\u2019s investigations in Darfur and strengthen efforts to gather crucial evidence from affected communities in Sudan, Khan said the investigation team, working with the ICC Registry\u2019s Outreach Unit, had prepared a series of public information messages explaining the Court\u2019s mandate and its ongoing investigations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The campaign focuses on investigations into alleged crimes committed in El Geneina and El Fasher and encourages people with relevant evidence to contact the Office through its dedicated reporting platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said broadcasts began on 16 June 2026 through Radio Dabanga\u2019s daily radio and television programmes, as well as its Arabic-language WhatsApp channel. The campaign will later be expanded to include messages in Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa, with the aim of informing victims, witnesses, internally displaced people, current and former perpetrators, and accomplices willing to cooperate, and anyone else with relevant information, about the types of evidence and investigative leads the Office is seeking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Office said Radio Dabanga\u2019s extensive reach across Sudan is expected to ensure that information from the Court reaches large numbers of people, including those living in very remote areas, enabling them to contribute more effectively to the Prosecutor\u2019s investigations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Investigations into El Geneina and El Fasher to continue<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Khan said the Office would continue over the coming period to advance its investigations, strengthen cooperation, and contribute to complementary justice initiatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These efforts will include accelerating investigations into alleged crimes committed in West Darfur and North Darfur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said the Office would continue to pursue its two principal investigations into West Darfur and North Darfur, while placing greater emphasis on evidence originating from inside Sudan and on material linking those bearing the greatest responsibility to the crimes under investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sudan urges Security Council to speed up ICC action<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sudan\u2019s deputy permanent representative to the United Nations expressed concern that no arrest warrants have yet been issued for suspects linked to crimes committed in El Geneina and El Fasher, despite what he described as the availability of evidence. He warned that the delay reinforced perpetrators\u2019 belief that they could escape punishment and encouraged further violations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He reaffirmed Sudan\u2019s commitment to cooperating with the ICC and called on the UN Security Council to accelerate legal proceedings and facilitate the issuance of arrest warrants against those accused of crimes in Darfur, warning that continued delays undermine confidence in justice and encourage impunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking before the Security Council during its consideration of the ICC Prosecutor\u2019s six-monthly report on Darfur, Minister Plenipotentiary Ammar Mohamed Mahmoud said Sudan remained firmly committed to the principles of justice and accountability, particularly for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, stressing that justice is a fundamental pillar of lasting and sustainable peace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He urged the ICC to complete its legal procedures without delay, saying that \u201cany unjustified delay sends the wrong message to perpetrators\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mahmoud also called for investigations to extend to those who incited crimes against civilians, the rape of women and girls, and anyone who justified or supported such crimes, regardless of where they reside. True accountability, he said, should extend beyond those who directly committed the crimes to include everyone involved in planning them or facilitating them, including through the recruitment of foreign mercenaries, financing, or other forms of support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On cooperation with the Court, Mahmoud said coordination under UN Security Council Resolution 1593 remained ongoing. Despite the security challenges, Sudan had responded to requests from the Office of the Prosecutor and had facilitated investigative missions to displacement camps, where investigators met witnesses and victims.<\/p>\n