UK imposes sanctions on 15 Sudanese commanders over wartime sexual violence

On Monday, the United Kingdom placed sanctions on fifteen senior commanders, militia leaders and security officials from both the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces, as well as allied armed groups, alleging they perpetrated rape, torture and attacks on civilians during the prolonged siege of al-Fashir in North Darfur. The action follows a UK-funded study by the Centre for Information Resilience that described systematic starvation and conflict-related sexual violence by both sides.

The targeted individuals include high-ranking officers from the two main factions and their allied militias. In addition to the punitive measures, Britain committed an additional £15 million to fund humanitarian relief and survivor assistance programmes in Sudan. The sanctions aim to hold war-time perpetrators accountable and signal international condemnation of sexual violence in the Sudanese war, a year after al-Fashir fell and became a focal point of atrocities.