The UN's top human rights body on Friday condemned the “horrific violations and abuses” committed by the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces during the ongoing civil war.
A new UN report – based on interviews with 303 victims and witnesses and contains videos, photographs and satellite imagery – stated that the army and RSF have “used explosive weapons with wide area effects, such as missiles fired from fighter jets, unmanned aerial vehicles, anti-aircraft weapons and artillery shells in densely populated areas”.
The report also accused the RSF of using human shields.
It described incidents in the capital Khartoum in which dozens of people were arrested and held outside near RSF military posts to deter air strikes by Sudanese fighter jets.
“For nearly a year now, accounts coming out of Sudan have been of death, suffering and despair, as the senseless conflict and human rights violations and abuses have persisted with no end in sight,” UN human rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement after the release of the report.
“Some of these violations would amount to war crimes.
“The guns must be silenced and civilians must be protected.”
The report also found that at least 118 people had been subjected to sexual violence, with many of the assaults committed by members of the paramilitary forces.
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Sudanese army soldiers, loyal to army chief Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, pose for a picture at the Rapid Support Forces base in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan on April 16. AFP -
Smoke billows above residential buildings in Khartoum on April 16 as fighting in Sudan raged for a second day in battles between rival generals. AFP -
Sudanese greet army soldiers in Port Sudan on April 16. AFP -
Destroyed planes at Khartoum International Airport on April 17. Reuters -
People flee Khartoum during clashes between the paramilitary RSF and the army on April 19. Reuters -
A column of smoke rises behind buildings near the airport area in Khartoum on April 19 following the collapse of a 24-hour truce. AFP -
People flee their neighbourhoods amid fighting between the army and RSF in Khartoum on April 19. AFP -
Black smoke covers the sky above Khartoum on April 19. AFP -
Residential buildings damaged in fighting in Khartoum on April 20. AP -
Sudanese army soldiers sit on top of a tank in the Red Sea city of Port Sudan on April 20. AFP -
People carry Othman Mohamed, a senior general loyal to Gen Al Burhan, on their shoulders in Port Sudan on April 20. AFP -
A Sudanese evacuee is embraced after disembarking from a Spanish Air and Space Force plane at Torrejon de Ardoz Airbase, Spain, on April 24. Reuters -
People gather as they flee clashes between the RSF and the army in Khartoum on April 24. Reuters -
A member of the Saudi Royal Navy carries a child who was evacuated from Sudan, in Jeddah on April 24. Photo: SPA -
Greek citizens arrive in Greece from Sudan on board a military plane on April 25. AFP -
Ali Mazloum, a Lebanese citizen who was evacuated from Sudan, is welcomed upon his arrival at Beirut airport on April 25. Reuters -
Palestinian evacuees from Sudan arrive at Rafah crossing, between Egypt and the Gaza Strip on April 28. EPA -
Black smoke rises over Khartoum on April 28. AFP -
A woman and child evacuated from Sudan arrive in Abu Dhabi on April 29. Reuters -
Activists demonstrate in front of the White House in Washington, calling on the US to intervene to stop the fighting in Sudan on April 29. AFP -
Children fleeing Sudan arrive at Wadi Karkar bus station in Aswan, southern Egypt, on April 30. EPA -
Clouds of black smoke billow over Khartoum as fighting continues on May 1. Reuters -
A Sudanese refugee who crossed into Chad cooks a meal in a makeshift shelter at a camp in Koufroun, near Echbara, on May 1. AFP -
People board a Russian military aircraft during an evacuation operation at Khartoum airport on May 2. EPA -
A boy holds bullet cartridges as clashes between the RSF and the army continue in Khartoum on May 13. Reuters -
A Sudanese girl who fled the conflict in Sudan's Darfur region carries a pot on her way to collect water near the border between Sudan and Chad on May 12. Reuters -
Members of staff offload aid supplies provided by the World Health Organisation and UAE Aid from a plane that arrived from the Emirates at Port Sudan on May 5. AFP -
The UAE sent three aid planes to support the Sudanese people on May 8. Photo: Wam -
RSF fighters gather near the presidential palace in Khartoum on May 1. AFP -
A man inspects the damage as he walks near a destroyed building and car in the Azhari district of Khartoum on June 6. AFP -
Wounded Sudanese refugees who fled conflict in West Darfur receive medical support from Doctors Without Borders and health ministry staff at a hospital in Adre, Chad, on June 16. Reuters -
Evacuees from Sudan arrive at Baghdad International Airport on June 18. AFP -
Suad Fissa, 40, an asylum seeker and factory worker from Darfur, cries as she speaks about her missing children in Tel Aviv, Israel, on June 24. Reuters
One woman, the UN said, “was held in a building and repeatedly gang raped over a period of 35 days”.
Both sides have also recruited child soldiers, the report added.
Mr Turk called for “prompt, thorough, effective, transparent, independent and impartial investigations” and for those responsible to be brought to justice.
Last month, International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Karim Khan told the UN Security Council that there is evidence that Rome Statute crimes – which include genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes – are being committed in Sudan.
The civil war in Sudan broke out on April 15 last year over disputes about the blueprint for a political transition and the integration of the RSF into the military after the removal of former leader Omar Al Bashir.
The conflict has persisted despite numerous international attempts to broker a ceasefire.
Fighting has killed thousands and displaced nearly eight million people, according to the UN.
