The US has accused Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of killing people and imposed sanctions on its leader.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti, is being punished for his role in systematic atrocities against the people of Sudan during the 20-month conflict.
He said the RSF and allied forces were responsible for the killing of “men and boys – even babies”, as well as brutal racial violence against women.
Soldiers also target fleeing civilians and kill innocent people fleeing the war, Blinken said.
“Based on this information, I now conclude that members of the RSF and allied forces committed genocide in Sudan,” he said.
In response, RSF accused the US of double standards and failure to deal effectively with this ongoing crisis.
“The decision… reveals the failure of the [US President Joe] The Biden administration is dealing with the Sudan crisis and the double standards that followed [with regards to the crisis],” said Hemedti's mentor, El-Basha Tbaeq, in a post on his X account.
He added that this could complicate the Sudanese crisis and prevent negotiations to address the causes of the conflict.
The RSF has been fighting the Sudanese army since April 2023, and there has been a growing outcry over its conduct during the war.
The US had previously determined that the RSF and other militias were involved in war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing in the western Darfur region, where the group was accused of targeting and killing non-Arabs.
Both sides have been accused of atrocities, with the conflict leading to the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
In May, the US special envoy to Sudan, Tom Perriello, said that some estimates suggested that as many as 150,000 people had been killed in the conflict.
Famine has been declared in many parts of the country, with 24.6 million people – almost half of the population – in urgent need of food aid, according to experts.
Blinken said that neither the RSF nor the Sudanese military are ready to run Sudan.
“Both rebels are responsible for the violence and suffering in Sudan and they have no authority to rule a peaceful Sudan in the future,” he said.
The sanctions prohibit Hemedti and members of his immediate family from visiting the US, and any personal belongings there are prohibited.
Seven companies owned by the RSF based in the United Arab Emirates and one other individual are also being punished for helping the militant group buy weapons. The UAE has denied many allegations that it is funding and arming the RSF.
Hemedti is believed to control one of the country's most lucrative gold mines – Jebel Amer in North Darfur.
Almost all the authorized companies are connected with the gold trade. One of them, AZ Gold, imports gold from Sudan and sells it.
The US Treasury Department said in a statement that one of Hemedti's brothers, Algoney, had maintained access to an AZ Gold bank account in the UAE, which held millions of dollars.
Hemedti's conviction means that all three Dagalo brothers, including his deputy Abdel Rahim and his younger brother and procurement officer Algoney, are now under US sanctions.
The US has faced criticism that it has not done enough to end the conflict in Sudan, despite its involvement in the 2023 Jeddah talks and more recently in the Aligned for Advancing Lifesaving and Peace in Sudan (ALPS) group talks, so this is important. intervention by the outgoing Biden administration.
This nomination may have bi-partisan support in Congress and shows the incoming Donald Trump administration how the US now views the RSF.
Hemedti is not known to have assets in the US, but the genocide designation will affect all of RSF's business arms.
US actions may not have an immediate impact on the fight on the ground, but they will certainly increase pressure on regional supporters to distance themselves and be wary of doing business with the RSF.
It may also complicate any attempt to establish any management within RSF controlled areas.
The RSF controls about 50% of the country, including almost all of Darfur, Khartoum and other areas south of the capital, while the army was forced to move to Port Sudan in the east.
It is unclear whether this appointment will bring renewed interest in the ceasefire talks. Recently, the Sudanese military has expressed its acceptance of Turkey's mediation with the UAE in this conflict.
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