Recent information reported by the Chairman of the United Nations Security Council Committee, in accordance with a 2005 resolution concerning Sudan, demonstrates an increase in violence against civilians, particularly in West Darfur, as well as violations of the arms embargo.
During his recent presentation, South Korean Ambassador Joonkook Hwang, Chairman of the Security Council Committee Established Under Resolution 1591, outlined the body’s activities from December 13 to today ‘today. This report includes the publication of the annual report for 2023 and the receipt of the final report of the Sudan Panel on December 22, 2023, as well as its third quarterly report on February 23, 2024.
The committee highlighted violations of the arms embargo, breaches of humanitarian and human rights law, ethnic recruitment by warring parties and complex financing schemes operated by active armed groups in Darfur.
He stressed that anyone committing violations and other atrocities could be subject to targeted sanctions measures, as could parties and Member States facilitating transfers of weapons and military equipment to Darfur in violation of the embargo, such as as stipulated in paragraph 3(c) of resolution 1591 (2005).
The sanctions regime imposed on Sudan by Resolution 1591 includes asset freezes and travel bans on designated individuals involved in the Darfur conflict that began in the early 2000s.
Sudan’s envoy to the United Nations Security Council called for the lifting of sanctions, arguing that this would allow “the Sudanese government to better protect its civilians” in the fight against the RSF. He urged member states to name those responsible for arming militias on the sanctions list, while Sudan will provide the Committee with the names of some foreign individuals involved in supplying arms to the militias. Citing resolution 2725 (2024), he confirmed his delegation’s commitment to working with the Council to end sanctions.
The representative of Algeria focused on paragraph 4 of the report, which refers to the flow of arms and ammunition to Darfur. He recalled the embargo on arms and ammunition in the region, adding that the perpetrators of this trafficking face sanctions from the Security Council. He stressed that after 90 days, those responsible for transporting weapons should be identified and denounced by the Council.
More than 12,000 Sudanese are believed to have lost their lives since the start of the war between the RSF and the Sudanese armed forces in April last year.
UN humanitarian director Edem Wosornu has informed the Security Council that Sudan could become the world’s worst hunger crisis, with 18 million people already facing acute food insecurity.
She highlighted the need for humanitarian aid, lamenting that the UN appeal for $2.7 billion for Sudan was less than 5% funded, receiving only $131 million .