ICC Legal Expert Accuses RSF of War Crimes

Former International Criminal Court (ICC) defense lawyer and international law expert, Charles Taco, strongly criticized the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia, accusing them of committing war crimes by bombing hospitals and killing civilians in El Geneina in 2023 and El Fasher late last year, resulting in the deaths of children and women.

In his remarks at an event held at the United Nations headquarters in New York last week, titled “Global Challenges and Regional Visions for Inclusive Social Development,” with broad participation from diplomats, legal experts, and civil society representatives, Taco indicated that he had received a briefing on these violations two weeks prior at a conference held in London. This briefing took place at an event organized by the Darfur Associations UK, which had invited him as a keynote speaker.

Taku emphasized that he was among the first lawyers to work before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the Special Court for Sierra Leone, stressing that targeting children is a recurring pattern in many armed conflicts and constitutes a grave violation of international humanitarian law.

He also emphasized the importance of developing legal frameworks and public policies that recognize care work as a fundamental element in rebuilding affected communities, strengthening social cohesion, and ensuring the protection of the most vulnerable groups, including people with disabilities, the elderly, and those affected by trauma.

The session highlighted the conditions of care work in the contexts of armed conflict, humanitarian crises, climate change, and epidemics, focusing on the close relationship between care, human rights, justice, and psychosocial support in fragile and conflict-affected environments.