
In a significant move, the United States has officially labelled members of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) as perpetrators of genocide, imposing sanctions on the group’s leader. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the determination on Tuesday, citing evidence of the RSF’s “systematic” murder of men and boys, as well as targeted sexual violence against women and girls from specific ethnic groups.
The U.S. State Department identified Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly known as Hemedti, as the primary target of the sanctions, condemning him “for his role in systematic atrocities committed against the Sudanese people.” This declaration aligns with the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which defines genocide as acts intended to destroy, wholly or partially, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group.
Sudan has been engulfed in conflict since April 2023, pitting the Sudanese army against the RSF, and leading to a catastrophic humanitarian crisis marked by widespread famine. The ongoing war has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands and displaced over eight million people, making it the largest internal displacement crisis in the world.
According to the United Nations, more than 30 million people in Sudan—over half of whom are children—are currently in urgent need of humanitarian aid as the conflict continues to devastate the nation.
Alongside the sanctions against Hemedti, the U.S. Treasury Department has also designated seven companies and an additional individual associated with the RSF, emphasizing the group’s violent struggle for control over Sudan amid ongoing chaos.
As the situation unfolds, the international community watches closely, hoping for a resolution to the suffering faced by the Sudanese people.