New Amnesty International Report Accuses Sudan of Using Chemical
Weapons in Darfur
Posted by Enough Team on Sep 30, 2016
Amnesty International’s newly released report “Scorched Earth,
Poisoned air,” documents the use of chemical weapons by the Sudanese
government in the Jebel Marra region of Darfur.
“Based on testimony from caregivers and survivors, Amnesty
International estimates that between 200 and 250 people may have died
as a result of exposure to the chemical weapons agents, with many – or
most – being children. The vast majority of survivors of the suspected
chemical weapons attacks have had no access to adequate medical care.”
The Sudanese government launched a ground and air offensive in the
area in January 2016. The offensive continued until May 2016, when the
Darfur seasonal rains rendered ground attacks impossible. Amnesty
International believes chemical weapons may have been used
particularly during the early stages of the offensive.
Air attacks, however, continued until September 2016, with the last
recorded attack on the 9th of September 2016. According to the
Sudanese military, the purpose of the military campaign was to “attack
and gain control over positions held by members of the Sudan
Liberation Army/Abdul Wahid faction, and in turn to put an end to the
“rebellion” in Darfur.” According to the Amnesty International report,
hundreds of villages were attacked and torched, majority of which had
no formal armed opposition present at the time of the attacks.
Amnesty International urged the Sudanese government to “immediately
allow all humanitarian actors and United Nations Mission in Darfur
(UNAMID) unfettered access to all of Jebel Marra and to end all
violations of international human rights law (IHRL) and international
humanitarian law (IHL) being committed by members of the armed forces
and allied militias in Jebel Marra.”
It also calls on other actors, including the African Union Peace and
Security Council as well as the UN Security Council, to exert
political pressure on the government of Sudan to ensure this
unfettered access. Furthermore, it calls on the Security Council to
take action on the alleged use of chemical weapons stating:
“Amnesty International calls on the UN Security Council to
recommend that the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical
Weapons (OPCW) obtain clarification about the nature and extent of
Sudan’s chemical weapons program, demand that Sudan co-operate fully
with the OPCW, and reserve the right to enact other measures to
support the OPCW’s efforts, including the creation of a OPCW-United
Nations Joint Investigative Mechanism to identify individuals,
entities, groups, or governments who were perpetrators, organizers,
sponsors or otherwise involved in the development or use of chemicals
as weapons in the Republic of Sudan.”
You can read the full report here.
Sudan and South Sudan
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