Kuwait city: After two decades of warfare in the Sudanese region of Darfur, the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague has convicted the former chief of the notorious Janjaweed militia, Ali Mohammad Abdulrahman, known as Ali Kushayb, for committing war crimes and crimes against humanity.
According to Kuwait News Agency, the verdict, issued on October 6, found Kushayb guilty of 27 counts, including killing, rape, torture, and oppression of civilians in Darfur between 2003 and 2004. This landmark decision marks a historic turning point in the international justice landscape concerning Darfur, as it is the first of its kind since the United Nations Security Council referred the case to the ICC in 2005.
The case has garnered significant attention and interaction from various quarters, with calls in Sudan for the prosecution of other figures, notably the former president, Omar Hassan Al-Bashir. The prosecution relied on testimonies from 81 witnesses and 1,521 pieces of evidence to secure the conviction.
Adam Rejal, spokesperson for the general coordination commission for the displaced camp in Darfur, stated to KUNA that the court's ruling was a true victory for the victims. He urged for the prosecution of other individuals with similar records, including former president Al-Bashir, ex-minister of defense Abdel Rahim Hussein, and former minister of state for humanitarian affairs Ahmad Haroun.
The Emergency Lawyers organization also praised the ICC verdict, emphasizing that it demonstrated the involvement of former regime leaders in the Darfur crimes. Salih Mahmoud, the head of the Darfur attorneys' authority, asserted that crimes against humanity should not be subject to a statute of limitations and must not be pardoned.
He called on the ICC to expand its jurisdiction in Sudan to address other identical cases across the country. Additionally, he advocated for reforming the Sudanese judiciary and enacting laws that align with international standards, highlighting that genocides and war crimes were incorporated into national laws in 2009 but could not be applied retroactively to the Darfur crimes.
Nazhat Shameem Khan, the ICC deputy general prosecutor, remarked that the tribunal's ruling sent a strong message to perpetrators of atrocities in Sudan, affirming her belief that justice would ultimately prevail and that those responsible for crimes would be held accountable.
Analysts note that the journey to achieving justice for the perpetrators is fraught with challenges, including local political divisions and the need for judiciary reform.