New York — In its statement before the Security Council meeting on the quarterly briefing of the Chairman of the Darfur Sanctions Committee, Sudan called on the UN Security Council to take firm and clear measures to condemn the actions of the terrorist rebel Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militias and send a strong and unequivocal message that the international community will not condone this ongoing aggression against civilians, and that the perpetrators of these heinous crimes will be brought before justice and be held accountable for their actions before national and international courts.
Permanent Representative of Sudan to the United Nations, Ambassador Al-Harith Idris said that the element of impunity must be curbed this time, particularly since Sudan has worked to develop mechanisms, including the formation of a committee concerned with violations and war crimes in Darfur, and this complements the role expected to be played by the International Criminal Court through the principle of judicial integration, and what was recently announced by the Prosecutor General of International Criminal Court in this regard.
Sudan's statement called on the Security Council to identify and hold accountable the countries that support and provide arms to these criminal militias, because some countries' support for these militias directly contributes to the continuation of violence and destruction in Sudan.
Sudan Representative to the United Nations said, in his statement, that some countries' support for these militias directly contributes to the continuation of violence and destruction in Sudan, and he singled out the United Arab Emirates, the official and regional sponsor of the criminal militia, whose support and supplies of weapons exacerbate the suffering and misery of targeted civilians in Sudan.
Ambassador Idris said that the continuation of this negative UAE support prolongs the conflict and increases the severity of the atrocities committed against innocent civilians, in addition to that it constitutes blatant contempt for the decisions of your esteemed council because of which we meet today, as there is no reason to maintain the Darfur sanctions if they do not include the countries involved in the violation, relevant to the Security Council resolutions, in particular the UAE and Chad.
He added, "Just yesterday, the Humanitarian Studies Laboratory at Yale University revealed, via satellite images taken the day before yesterday (June 11, 2024), that an IL-76 cargo plane flew over the areas where the RSF militia is located southeast of El-Fashir, which is as You know, an area of active military operations since the tenth of last May. The flight of the plane has been monitored several times, and it is likely that it is one of the flying planes that the UAE uses to deliver weapons and military equipment to the militia, stressing that the UAE is not just a country that supports and sponsors the militia war in Sudan, but rather it is a direct partner in the war, crime, and violations committed against civilians in Sudan.
The statement affirmed Sudan's commitment to its duty to protect civilians in accordance with international humanitarian law and its principles and international human rights law, explaining that the armed forces operate according to the rules of engagement that prioritize the protection of civilians, objects, civilian facilities and infrastructure in light of urban warfare that is not devoid of complexity.
He said, "Our Sudanese Armed Forces have been issuing warnings through the media and its various platforms urging citizens not to be within the scope of legitimate military targets, among other ongoing measures with which we aim to further reduce harm to civilians and civilian objects."
The statement referred to the Security Council's decision regarding El-Fashir, that the terrorist rebel RSF militia, as part of its propaganda plans, is promoting allegations that warplanes are targeting civilians and infrastructure, in order to divert attention from its horrific crimes witnessed in highly reliable reports by local and international bodies. Our investigations have proven in many cases that the militia deliberately bombs civilian areas in conjunction with Sudanese Armed Forces air sorties to give the impression that the bombing resulted from those sorties.
He lauded, "My government also remained committed to the pledges contained in the Jeddah Declaration dated May 11, 2023, but the terrorist rebel RSF militia not only ignored it, but also took the humanitarian truces we reached in Jeddah to expand the scope of its criminal military operations. Once again, the Sudanese government adheres to what it committed to in Jeddah, provided that the other party adheres to these obligations in letter and spirit". He said, "We are ready to participate positively in the Jeddah platform if the two facilitators decide to resume it, as our goal is to reach a just peace that preserves the entity of the Sudanese state and its constitutional institutions and guarantees our citizens dignity, freedom and peace."
He said, "We are committed to working constructively with partners to work to facilitate the arrival of aid in accordance with our national directives on humanitarian action and the guiding principles of humanitarian action set by the relevant General Assembly resolutions." He added, "We believe that Sudan and the United Nations share one goal, for which we will work in the constructive and positive spirit, facilitates the flow of aid and guarantees for humanitarian workers easy access to the country and movement to deliver aid." He pointed out that transporting relief from the city of Port Sudan to the rest of Sudan is three times less expensive than transporting it through neighboring countries. He said, "Our estimates indicate that the amount of food available in Sudan is sufficient to cover the needs of citizens. Therefore, we believe that it is better for the United Nations to purchase its needs from the local market to reduce the cost and contribute to supporting farmers indirectly in light of the current challenges."
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Sudan's permanent representative to the United Nations added, "Our internal obligations to facilitate the arrival of humanitarian aid to those in need must be accompanied by workers fulfilling their humanitarian pledges. We are concerned that the level of fulfillment of those pledges is much lower than hoped for at the present time, and because of that, aid has not reached some of the needy inside Sudan." "Also, some Sudanese refugees in neighboring countries do not receive the prescribed quotas." He continued, "We take this opportunity to extend our thanks to the countries that contributed to funding humanitarian action in Sudan." BH/BH
