The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday convicted former militia leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman for war crimes carried out during the conflict in Sudan’s Darfur region more than two decades ago.
Abd-Al-Rahman, a senior commander in the Janjaweed militias at the time, was found guilty on 27 counts, including rape, murder and persecution.
Up to 300,000 people were killed and 2.7 million were driven from their homes in Darfur after an insurgency by the territory’s ethnic central and sub-Saharan African community in 2003 drew a drastic reprisal from then-President Omar al-Bashir’s government.
The Janjaweed militias, loyal to al-Bashir, played a major role in atrocities committed during what became a scorched-earth campaign by the government.
What was the court’s verdict?
Abd-Al-Rahman, also know as Ali Kushayb, is to be sentenced at a later date and faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.
“He encouraged and gave instructions that resulted in the killings, the rapes and destruction committed by the Janjaweed,” presiding Judge Joanna Korner said, adding that the verdict by the three-judge panel was unanimous.
She said that in one incident, Abd-Al-Rahman loaded around 50 civilians onto trucks, beating some with axes before making them lie on the ground and ordering his troops to shoot them dead.
“The accused was not only giving orders … but was personally involved in the beatings and later was physically present and giving orders for the execution of those detained,” said Korner.
The accused had lodged a plea of innocence to all charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity when his trial opened in April 2022. He also argued that he was not the person known as Ali Kushayb.
Fifty-six witnesses testified against him during the trial, describing scenes of violence and rape that he had presided over.
Abd-Al-Rahman’s defense lawyers called 17 witnesses and argued that he had played no role in the Darfur conflict.
UN rights chief Volker Turk hailed the verdict as an “important acknowledgement of the enormous suffering endured by the victims of his heinous crimes, as well as a first measure of long overdue redress for them, and their loved ones.”
What happened in Darfur?
The campaign launched by President Omar al-Bashir included mass murders and rapes, in which the Janjaweed militias were a much-feared participant.
They were particularly known for attacking villages at dawn, mounted on horses or camels.
Al-Bashir himself has been charged by the ICC with crimes including genocide, but he has not been handed over to the court in The Hague.
The Darfur region is now again wracked by conflict amid Sudan’s ongoing civil war pitting the Sudan military against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, which were born out of the Janaweed militias and are supported by them.
