Sudan
Expected Council Action
In July, the International Criminal Court (ICC) Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan is expected to provide the semi-annual briefing to the Security Council on the ICC’s activities related to the situation in Darfur.
Background and Key Recent Developments
More than 17 years after the Council’s ICC referral on the situation in Darfur, through resolution 1593 of 31 March 2005, the first trial opened on 5 April 2022 with the case of Prosecutor v. Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (“Ali Kushayb”). Abd-Al-Rahman, reportedly a former leader of the Janjaweed militia, is accused of 31 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, allegedly committed in Darfur between August 2003 and approximately April 2004. The ICC concluded the trial in December 2024. On 6 October 2025, the ICC found Abd-Al-Rahman guilty of 27 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes, including ordering Janjaweed forces to commit murder and rape as war crimes and crimes against humanity, and intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population. On 9 December 2025, the Court sentenced him to 20 years of imprisonment.
The ICC Prosecutor’s most recent report to the Security Council, submitted on 24 June, noted that, on 10 March, both the Prosecution and the Defence filed appeals against the Trial Chamber’s sentencing judgment in the Abd-Al-Rahman case. The report indicated that the Appeals Chamber is expected to issue its decisions on the appeals against both the trial judgment and the sentencing judgment in the first half of 2027.
Four arrest warrants issued by the ICC remain outstanding—against Omar Al Bashir, former Sudanese President; Ahmad Muhammad Harun, former Sudanese Minister of State for the Interior; Abdel Raheem Muhammad Hussein, former Sudanese Minister of National Defence; and Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain, commander-in-chief of the Justice and Equality Movement at the time of the warrant. Pursuant to resolution 1593 and the subsequent orders of the ICC, Sudan remains under obligation to surrender the four remaining suspects to the court.
On 13 July 2023, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan announced that the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) had commenced an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Darfur since the outbreak of hostilities on 15 April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), and their allied armed groups. The ICC Prosecutor’s 24 June report, noted that, over the previous six months, the OTP conducted a series of key interviews that strengthened the evidentiary record and broadened its understanding of crimes committed in El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur, between April and July 2023. It added that the OTP had prioritised investigations into gender-based crimes and crimes against children committed in El Geneina.
The report also described progress in the OTP’s investigation into crimes committed in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, including through the deployment of investigators to Sudan and neighbouring countries to interview victims and insider witnesses. According to the report, the evidence collected to date depicts the commission of war crimes in El Fasher and its surrounding areas, including murder and outrages upon personal dignity. These investigations encompass crimes committed during the RSF’s October 2025 offensive and subsequent takeover of El Fasher, which was accompanied by widespread violations of international humanitarian law (IHL) and international human rights law (IHRL), including reports of mass killings, summary executions, abductions, arbitrary detention, and other abuses against civilians.
The ICC Prosecutor’s 24 June report also described the OTP’s cooperation with the Sudanese authorities, including the deployment of investigators to Sudan to identify potential witnesses in relation to crimes committed during the events in El Fasher in late October 2025. The report noted that other planned missions to Port Sudan could not proceed because the relevant authorities or persons of interest were unavailable. During the reporting period, the OTP submitted four requests for assistance to the Sudanese authorities, two of which received positive responses, while one could not be executed because of insufficient information and another remained pending following the reported relocation of relevant government offices to Khartoum.
Human Rights-Related Developments
At the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC), Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights Awa Dabo warned that the conflict in Sudan has continued to deepen and expand, marked by a sharp increase in the use of armed drones by the parties to the conflict. She said that between January and May, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) documented more than 1,000 civilians killed in drone strikes, representing around 80 percent of all conflict-related civilian deaths recorded this year. She also highlighted the unprecedented scale and brutality of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV), including gang rape, sexual torture, and sexual enslavement. Dabo added that CRSV is being used as a weapon of war to terrorise civilians and target individuals based on perceived party affiliation and ethnic identity.
Dabo called for an immediate end to attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, full compliance with the Security Council’s arms embargo in Darfur, and greater efforts to prevent the transfer of arms, including drones, used in violation of IHL across the entire territory of Sudan. She also urged member states to support the work of the ICC in Darfur and to make greater use of universal jurisdiction to ensure accountability for atrocity crimes.
In a 15 June press release, the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan (FFM), established by the HRC in October 2023, warned that the increasing use of arbitrary detention, torture, and enforced disappearances by the parties to the conflict as tools of control over civilian populations is exacerbating Sudan’s civilian protection crisis. It added that widespread violations of IHL and IHRL, including war crimes committed by both parties, show no sign of abating and may also amount to crimes against humanity. In light of these findings, the FFM called for support for victims, cooperation with the ICC, the expansion of its jurisdiction beyond Darfur, the establishment of an independent international judicial mechanism working in close cooperation with the ICC, the systematic collection and preservation of evidence for future criminal proceedings, and targeted sanctions.
Key Issues and Options
An underlying issue for the Security Council remains how to effectively promote justice and accountability for both past atrocities committed in Darfur and the ongoing violations of IHL and IHRL being perpetrated by Sudan’s warring parties across the country. Broadly, the continued violence, insecurity, and targeted attacks against civilians remain a major concern for Council members in the context of the current conflict. The failure to ensure accountability for crimes committed over the past two decades has contributed to the recurrence of violence and impunity in the current conflict.
A key challenge for the Council is how to strengthen cooperation between the ICC and relevant Sudanese authorities, as well as non-state actors, third states, and international and regional organisations. This includes facilitating the execution of outstanding arrest warrants; supporting the ICC’s ongoing investigations; and enabling the safe collection, preservation, and transmission of evidence. In this regard, the ICC Prosecutor’s 24 June report noted that the RSF had failed to respond to the OTP’s repeated requests for cooperation, despite previous assurances that they would do so.
Another key issue is how to support the documentation, preservation, and analysis of evidence in an increasingly insecure and fragmented operating environment. According to the Prosecutor’s 24 June report, the OTP continues to face significant operational challenges, including limited or no access to relevant locations, ongoing hostilities, and the continued exercise of authority by individuals allegedly responsible for crimes. The report noted that the absence of direct access to crime scenes has constrained the OTP’s ability to conduct on-site examinations, recover physical evidence, document forensic traces, and independently verify information.
Amid growing political sensitivities and divisions among states regarding the ICC’s work, another issue for the Council is how to ensure that the Court receives the political support and resources necessary to advance its mandate, promote accountability, and help break the cycle of impunity.
Council members supportive of the ICC’s work in Sudan could consider holding a joint press stakeout following the July briefing to publicly reaffirm their commitment to justice and accountability. They could also consider convening an Arria-formula meeting with the OTP, OHCHR, the FFM, civil society organisations, and victims’ representatives to discuss accountability efforts, evidence preservation, and avenues for strengthening international cooperation with the Court.
Council members could also consider inviting UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk to brief on the broader human rights situation in Sudan. Additionally, members may wish to invite the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, to shed more light on the scale and gravity of CRSV and the protection needs of affected populations.
Council Dynamics
The Council is divided on the work of the ICC. Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Denmark, France, Greece, Latvia, Liberia, Panama, and the UK are states parties to the Rome Statute of the ICC. Several of these members have expressed strong support for the ICC’s efforts and have commended the OTP for its continued pursuit of accountability for crimes committed in Darfur.
Russia has been particularly vocal in its criticism of the ICC, accusing the Court of selective justice and political bias. Russia’s view hardened following the Court’s announcement on 17 March 2023 that it had issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova for allegedly committing the war crime of “unlawful deportation” and “unlawful transfer” of children from Ukraine to Russia.
While the US has traditionally supported the ICC’s efforts concerning Sudan, it criticised the ICC for issuing arrest warrants in November 2024 against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity and war crimes linked to Israel’s military actions in Gaza since at least 8 October 2023. In response, on 6 February 2025, US President Donald Trump issued an executive order authorising sanctions against foreign nationals involved in ICC investigations or prosecutions targeting US citizens or nationals of allied countries that are not parties to the Rome Statute. On 5 June 2025, the US also sanctioned four individuals serving as ICC judges for their roles in authorising investigations into US personnel in Afghanistan and issuing arrest warrants for Israeli officials.
Several Council members, supportive of the ICC’s work on Darfur, have expressed concern over efforts to undermine the Court’s independence, including through the use of sanctions and political pressure. These members have condemned any attempts to intimidate the OTP, warning that such measures could hinder the Court’s ability to carry out its mandate not only in Sudan but also in other jurisdictions.
| Security Council Resolutions | |
| 31 March 2005S/RES/1593 | This resolution referred the situation in Darfur to the International Criminal Court. |
| Security Council Meeting Records | |
| 19 January 2026S/PV.10092 | This meeting was a briefing by ICC Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan on the court’s work on the situation in Darfur. |
