NEW YORK, Jan 19 (KUNA) -- Deputy Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Nazhat Khan warned on Monday that the Sudanese Darfur province has been subject to collective torture, citing investigations regarding using sexual violence as a war tool.
This came in a briefing of Khan through a videoconference before a UN Security Council session on the situation in southern Sudan.
She said the ICC Office of the Prosecutor sees that war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed in Sudan's Al Fashir, mainly late October, according to initial information collected by the office.
The collapse of Al Fashir into the hands of the Sudanese Rapid Support Forces has been accompanied by organized and systematic campaign of wide-scale suffering that particularly targeted non-Arab communities, including rape, arbitrary detention, executions, and mass graves, she pointed out.
Effective investigations into these crimes remain a top priority in the upcoming phase.
Khan referred to the violent incidents occurred in 2023 in Geneina City, west of Darfur, that included attacks against internally displaced persons' tents and looting acts as well as random targeting of civilians, along other crimes.
Evidence shows that the types of atrocities across the city in that year have repeated in Al Fashir in 2025, and will continue in a city after a city until the conflict stops, she elaborated.
She affirmed that all parties to the conflict must pledge their commitments under the international law to avoid targeting civilians and civil facilities, referring to reports claiming the Sudanese army committed crimes in Darfur.
The ICC investigations still face major obstacles including limited access to witnesses and hinderance to safely reach crimes scenes, she said.
International community can support the office through sharing satellite photos and other data, and the identification of community's individuals in Darfur, she stressed.
The Deputy Prosecutor renewed again call for the halt of all attempts aiming to hinder their work either through sanctions or issuing arrest warrants issued against the ICC's officials.
Khan underlined that they do not have time to waste in efforts aiming to achieve justice to Darfur's societies. (end) ast.hm