Amnesty calls for Sudan-wide arms embargo

The ongoing war in Sudan is being fuelled by a constant flow of weapons into the country, Amnesty International said today in a new briefing. The report identified weapons produced by China, Russia, Serbia, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, being used by the warring parties in Sudan.

The briefing, ‘New Weapons Fuelling the Sudan Conflict’, finds that recently manufactured weapons and ammunition from countries including China, Russia, Serbia, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Yemen, are being imported in large quantities into Sudan, “often in flagrant breach of the existing Darfur arms embargo.

“Our research shows that weapons entering the country have been placed into the hands of combatants who are accused of international humanitarian and human rights law violations”, said Deprose Muchena, Amnesty International’s senior director for regional human rights impact.

“We have methodically tracked a range of lethal weapons – including handguns, shotguns and rifles – that are being used in Sudan by warring forces.”

Amnesty International said it examined over 1,900 shipment records from two distinct trade data sources and assessed open source and digital evidence, which included around 2,000 photos and videos of newly made or recently imported weapons in Sudan.

The findings showed that advanced drone jammers, mortars and anti-materiel rifles manufactured in China have been used by both sides of the conflict. In another example, “a variety of recently manufactured armoured personnel carriers from the UAE have been used by the RSF”, according to the briefing.

“By supplying arms to Sudan, states parties to the Arms Trade Treaty – such as China and Serbia – are violating their legal obligations under articles 6 and 7 of the Treaty, and therefore undermining the legally-binding framework which regulates the global arms trade.”

Radio Dabanga previously reported on the role of Iranian drones in battles between the SAF and the RSF.

Embargo

Amnesty International insisted that the United Nations Security Council must urgently expand its current arms embargo on Darfur to the rest of Sudan.

“It is clear that the existing arms embargo that currently applies only to Darfur is completely inadequate and must be updated and extended to cover the whole of Sudan. This is a humanitarian crisis that cannot be ignored. As the threat of famine looms large, the world cannot continue to fail civilians in Sudan”, said Deprose Muchena. 

On April 15, 2024, marking the first anniversary of the Sudan conflict, Amnesty International initiated a worldwide petition calling on the UN Security Council to broaden the current arms embargo to include the entirety of Sudan, not just Darfur.