Two decades after the brutal campaign in Darfur that left hundreds of thousands dead, the International Criminal Court (ICC) delivered its first conviction linked to the conflict, finding Janjaweed commander Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, also known as Ali Kushayb, guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The landmark ruling, issued in The Hague after an extensive trial, held him responsible for 27 counts of atrocities committed against the Fur, Masalit, and other non-Arab communities between August 2003 and March 2004 in West Darfur. The crimes included murder, rape, persecution, torture, and attacks on civilians in towns such as Kodoom, Bindisi, Mukjar, and Deleig.
In a 355-page judgment, Presiding Judge Joanna Korner, along with Judges Reine Alapini-Gansou and Althea Violet Alexis-Windsor, concluded beyond reasonable doubt that Ali Kushayb ordered, supported, and participated in widespread and systematic attacks that resulted in mass killings and forced displacement. The Janjaweed, Arab militias armed and supported by Sudan’s security forces, carried out Khartoum’s campaign to suppress a rebellion by non-Arab groups, razing villages, executing men, and committing widespread sexual violence. Testimonies presented in court described indiscriminate killings of civilians, including accounts of families forced to flee or leave loved ones behind to survive.
Ali Kushayb surrendered to the ICC in 2020 after evading authorities for more than 12 years, following the fall of Sudan’s long-time leader Omar al-Bashir. His sentencing will follow the verdict, which is subject to appeal, and a reparations phase for victims will be opened. The conviction represents multiple milestones for international justice: it is the first ICC verdict in the Darfur situation, the first case referred by the UN Security Council in 2005 to result in conviction, and the ICC’s first conviction for gender-based persecution. The ICC Prosecutor’s Office continues to pursue outstanding warrants for other high-profile figures, including Bashir and former ministers Ahmad Harun and Abdel Raheem Hussein.
The conviction comes amid renewed violence in Darfur, as Sudan’s army battles the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which reportedly evolved from the Janjaweed militias. Recent reports indicate mass killings and ethnically targeted attacks, including at least 91 civilians killed in September in El Fasher during RSF strikes involving drones and ground incursions, echoing the horrors of two decades ago.
Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan described the ruling as a crucial step toward closing the impunity gap in Darfur, emphasizing that it sends a message to perpetrators of atrocities that justice will prevail and honoring the bravery of thousands of Darfuri victims who sought justice over the years. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk also welcomed the verdict, calling it an important acknowledgment of the suffering endured by victims and a first measure of long-overdue redress.
