The U.S. on Tuesday imposed sanctions on a commander of Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, accusing him of being involved in human rights abuses in West Darfur, as Washington increases pressure over the war in the African nation.
The war in Sudan has produced waves of ethnically-driven violence blamed largely on the RSF © Mena Today
The U.S. on Tuesday imposed sanctions on a commander of Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, accusing him of being involved in human rights abuses in West Darfur, as Washington increases pressure over the war in the African nation.
The U.S. Treasury Department in a statement said Abdel Rahman Juma Barkalla led the RSF's campaign in West Darfur, which the department said was marked by credible claims of serious human rights abuses, including the targeting of civilians, conflict-related sexual violence and ethnically-motivated violence.
The action follows sanctions imposed on Barkalla by a United Nations Security Council committee last week and marks the latest action by Washington over the war in Sudan, which erupted in April 2023 from a power struggle between the Sudanese army and RSF ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule.
"Today's action underscores our commitment to hold accountable those who seek to facilitate these horrific acts of violence against vulnerable civilian populations in Sudan," Bradley Smith, Treasury's acting under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in the statement.
"The United States remains focused on supporting an end to this conflict and calls on both sides to participate in peace talks and ensure the basic human rights of all Sudanese civilians," Smith said.
The war in Sudan has produced waves of ethnically-driven violence blamed largely on the RSF. The RSF denies harming civilians and attributes the activity to rogue elements.
The U.N. says nearly 25 million people - half of Sudan's population - need aid. Famine has taken hold in displacement camps, 11 million people have fled their homes and nearly three million of those people have left for other countries.
By Daphne Psaledakis
Human Rights Watch has accused an Abu Dhabi-based security company of recruiting Colombian private military contractors and deploying them to fight alongside Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) between 2024 and 2025, adding to what the rights group describes as a growing body of evidence of Emirati military support for the paramilitary group.
Farmers across Sudan say the hike in global fuel and fertilizer costs resulting from the Iran conflict will force them to cut back on planting this summer, restricting food production in a country where war has caused acute hunger.
At least nine people were killed and six others injured when a four-storey building collapsed overnight in the Moroccan city of Fez, about 200 kilometres (124 miles) east of Rabat, local authorities said on Thursday.
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