The United States has accused Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of committing genocide during the ongoing conflict and imposed sanctions on its leader, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who announced the sanctions, stated that the RSF had engaged in “systematic” atrocities against the Sudanese people, including the murder of men, boys, and infants as well as ethnically-targeted sexual violence against women. The US had previously accused the RSF and allied militias of war crimes and ethnic cleansing in Sudan’s western Darfur region. In response, the RSF criticized the US for double standards, claiming the sanctions would complicate the crisis. Since April 2023, the RSF has been embroiled in a brutal conflict with Sudan’s military, leading to one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Over 150,000 deaths have been reported, and 24.6 million people face acute hunger.
Source: BBC
