Mr. Beyani said UN News In an interview on Thursday he spoke with the Resident Coordinator in Sudan, Denise Brown, and plans to issue an advisory to Secretary-General António Guterres, the Security Council and the broader UN system.
sounding the alarm
““Once our office sounds the alarm, the alarm sounds beyond ordinary violations of human rights or international humanitarian law.” said.
“This indicates that the threshold is about to be crossed and therefore early action needs to be taken.”
Graphic reports and videos began circulating online late last month of apparent war crimes committed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia as its fighters finally took control of the Darfuri capital of El Fasher from government troops after more than 500 days of siege.
Terror in Darfur
“We can’t hear the screams, but as we sit here today, the horror continues,” U.N. aid chief Tom Fletcher said in a briefing to the Security Council on Oct. 31.
Beyani’s office said there are risk indicators of atrocity crimes in Sudan, but emphasizes that only an international court or other legal body can determine the existence of genocide.
The UN-backed International Criminal Court (ICC) expressed deep alarm in a statement on Monday over reports of mass killings, rape and other crimes emerging from El Fasher, and noted that its investigation into alleged war crimes committed since the outbreak of war in April 2023 is ongoing.
“Within the ongoing investigation, the office is taking immediate steps regarding the alleged crimes in El-Fasher to preserve and collect relevant evidence for use in future prosecutions,” the prosecutor’s office stressed.
RSF agrees to ‘humanitarian ceasefire’: reports
The RSF reportedly agreed to a “humanitarian ceasefire” on Thursday, following growing criticism of the actions of its fighters in and around El Fasher.
Leaders of the militia group said they would accept truce terms proposed by a mediation group consisting of the United States, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, according to media reports.
The agony continues for civilians
Meanwhile, the UN warns of a worsening humanitarian situation in North Darfur, where thousands of displaced families from El Fasher live in extremely harsh conditions.
“In and around Tawila, displaced people lack adequate food, clean water, shelter and medical care.“UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said on Thursday.
Aid agencies are working with local partners to establish new camps, which will add to the more than 650,000 people already in Tawila.
In Tawila Al Omda alone, more than 3,000 new arrivals are in urgent need of plastic sheets, mats and blankets as temperatures drop.
Many, including injured people, people with disabilities and unaccompanied children, sleep outdoors. Similar conditions affect more than 6,500 people in the Daba Al Naira and Um Jangour camps.