Dozens of international and regional organizations call on the Human Rights Council to prevent massacres in El Obeid and to condemn the UAE’s “malicious” role in the Sudanese war

Agencies

Thirty-eight regional and international humanitarian organizations signed a joint letter addressed to the UN Human Rights Council at its 62nd session, calling for urgent intervention to address the situation in and around El Obeid, western Sudan, and for bold steps to be taken to prevent atrocities and hold those responsible accountable.

The letter, the text of which was published by Human Rights Watch and which organizations are requesting to sign (with signatures open until the 29th of this month), addresses the permanent representatives of member and observer states to the UN Human Rights Council (Geneva, Switzerland). It calls on the Council to “unequivocally condemn external actors supporting the warring parties, including the United Arab Emirates.”

The letter states that, in light of the situation in and around El Obeid, which portends an imminent ground offensive by the Rapid Support Forces and their allies, and given credible reports of the risk of atrocities and further violations across Sudan, the Human Rights Council should “hold an urgent debate during its 62nd regular session, or convene a special session at the earliest possible opportunity.”

The letter urged the Council to ensure that the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission is provided with sufficient resources to identify all those responsible for atrocities and ensure their accountability, in accordance with its mandate. This includes encouraging the Mission to report on external actors fueling violations in Sudan.

The letter also noted that Human Rights Watch reported that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) received military support from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) throughout the conflict. The UAE directly supported this paramilitary group and facilitated the recruitment of hundreds of private military contractors for it.

Human Rights Watch stressed the need for world leaders to break their silence regarding the UAE’s malign role in fueling the conflict. Civil society organizations have repeatedly called on the international community to condemn the UAE’s role in exacerbating the conflict in Sudan.

The letter called for the condemnation and accountability of other external actors supporting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) or other warring parties in Sudan, including the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), for violations they have committed or contributed to, some of which amount to crimes under international law.

It stated that the Human Rights Council should not simply react to one tragedy after another. Given that the Fact-Finding Mission concluded that the massacres perpetrated by the RSF and allied forces in El Fasher in 2015 bore “the hallmarks of genocide,” the Council should fully utilize its preventive mechanisms.

The signatories urged all member and observer states of the Human Rights Council to support the convening of an urgent debate or special session on the situation in and around El Obeid, North Kordofan. The Council called on the Commission of Inquiry to conduct an urgent investigation into the situation and to submit its report between its sixty-third and sixty-fourth sessions. This should be followed by an interactive dialogue, and the Commission of Inquiry should be requested to update the Council on the progress of its investigation during the Council’s sixty-third session, with sufficient time allocated to enable the Commission to do so. The Commission should also submit the comprehensive report required under resolution 60/3.

Furthermore, the Council called for additional steps toward accountability in Sudan, including condemning external actors supporting the warring parties, including the United Arab Emirates, and ensuring that the Joint Fact-Finding Mission to the Republic of Sudan is provided with sufficient resources to identify all those responsible for violations, with a view to holding them accountable in accordance with its mandate. This includes encouraging the Mission to report on external actors fueling violations in Sudan.