The European Parliament (EU) on Thursday called on EU member states to designate the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia as a terrorist organization, strongly condemning atrocities committed against civilians and civilian infrastructure in the Sudanese city of El-Obeid, particularly during the militia's ongoing siege.
In a press statement, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) condemned all foreign interference fueling the conflict and urged states to end all forms of support for the RSF, particularly the supply of weapons.
The statement called on the European Union to add the RSF to its list of terrorist organizations and hold those responsible for the atrocities accountable. MEPs also strongly condemned war crimes and crimes against humanity in Sudan and called for increased humanitarian assistance.
They warned of the growing risk of further war crimes, escalating violations of international humanitarian law, and the deteriorating human rights situation in El-Obeid.
Keep up with the latest headlines on WhatsApp | LinkedIn
MEPs urged the EU to urgently scale up humanitarian assistance to Sudan, including direct funding for frontline local organizations, particularly those operating in the health sector. They also stressed the need to establish humanitarian corridors to facilitate civilian evacuations and the delivery of aid.
The lawmakers further called for an end to attacks against civilians, including sexual violence, and to the famine resulting from the conflict.
They also urged the European Union to impose sanctions on those responsible for attacks against civilians, as well as on external entities complicit in violating the UN arms embargo, including Global Security Services Group.
The statement also called for an independent investigation into war crimes and for the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to be expanded to cover all of Sudan.
According to the European Parliament, the resolution on Sudan was adopted by 476 votes in favor (79.3%), with 28 votes against (4.6%) and 96 abstentions (16%), out of 600 members who participated in the vote.
