Darfur Union in the UK Welcomes ICC Prosecutor's Statement Regarding Investigating New War Crimes

00:13 AM July, 14 2023

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*US State Department issued a Communiqué regarding this case; Others such as UK FCDO and France Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs must follow suit*

The Darfur Union in the UK has welcomed the briefing given by ICC prosecutor Karim Khan to UN Security Council on recent atrocities in West Darfur (ref. 1). The union said that the report by U.N. human rights office which cited “least 87 bodies – some of them from the ethnic African Masalit tribe – were uncovered in a mass grave in West Darfur, near the city of Elgeneina” shed the light on even more gruesome crimes committed agains the people of Sudan in Darfur, on the basis of ethnicity. The Human Right report continued to mention “credible information” that they were killed by Rapid Support Force fighters and an allied militia (ref. 2).

Mr. Khan, ICC prosecutor told the security council that ““We are investigating those allegations” and added “We are by any analysis not on the precipice of a human catastrophe but in the very midst of one” (ref. 3).

The Darfur Union in the Uk is appalled by the lack of accountability for the atrocities in Darfur. The union called on the international community to follow suit and stop supporting the perpetrators of there heinous crimes, stop giving them platform to spew their hatred to change the narrative of what is really happening on the ground against the local population in Darfur. The statement Issued by the US State Department (ref. 4) mentioned that “The United States condemns in the strongest terms the continued atrocities and ethnically targeted killings committed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and its allied militias in West Darfur“. Although it is important, it fell short of putting pressure on the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) by calling out their leaders, Hemiditi, his brother Abdelrahim Dagalo, His brother Algoni Dagalo (the CFO of RSF) and Abdelrahman Juma, RSF commander the killing hands on the ground in West Darfur. These perpetrators need to be brought to justice. In addition issuing sanctions against them is a given, and freezing all their assets. United Kingdom and other countries should put their foot forward and prioritise the case.

DARFUR Union in the UK is hopeful that the ICC would use its deliberations to "send a strong message to the leadership of the Janjaweed/ RSF that impunity will not be tolerated.

In a statement, the Union mentioned:
"We welcome the ICC prosecutor's briefing on the recent atrocities in West Darfur. This is a further step towards ensuring that justice is served for the people of Darfur. We are hopeful that the ICC will use its deliberations to send a strong message to the Perpetrators that impunity will not be tolerated."
"The killings in Mistri are just the latest in a long line of atrocities that have been committed against the people of Darfur. The ICC has a vital role to play in ensuring that justice is served for the people of Darfur."
"We will continue to work with the ICC and other international organisations to ensure that justice is served for the people of Darfur. Moreover, DARFUR Union in the UK calls upon the ICC to expand on the area of investigations as many atrocities have taken place in West Darfur and other part of Darfur committed by RSF and their affiliated Janjaweed militia. Furthermore, The union will continue issuing statement citing direct testimonies of the survivors from ground as well as testimonies of the volunteers at the epicentre of the refugees crisis (Ref. 5)"

Darfur Union in the UK
Website: https://darfurunionuk.wordpress.comhttps://darfurunionuk.wordpress.com
Email: [email protected]
Twitter handle: @darfurunionuk

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