US condemns human rights violations, 'horrific violence' in Sudan

[June 16, 2023]  (Reuters) - The U.S. on Thursday condemned "in the strongest terms" what it called human rights violations, abuses and "horrific violence" in Sudan during that country's two-month-old war, a State Department spokesperson said.  

The U.S. is especially concerned about reports of ethnic violence committed by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied militias in West Darfur, spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.

Fighting throughout Sudan between the army and the RSF has displaced 2.2 million people and killed at least 1,000 people.

"The atrocities occurring today in West Darfur and other areas are an ominous reminder of the horrific events that led the United States to determine in 2004 that genocide had been committed in Darfur," Miller said.

He said the U.S. specifically condemns the killing of West Darfur Governor Khamis Abbakar on Wednesday after he had accused the RSF and other forces of perpetrating genocide.

While the atrocities "are primarily attributable to the RSF and affiliated militia," the Sudanese Armed Forces "has failed to protect civilians and has reportedly stoked conflict by encouraging mobilization of tribes," Miller said.

The army and RSF, which together ousted autocrat Omar al-Bashir in 2019, began fighting in the heart of the capital Khartoum on April 15 after disagreeing over the integration of their troops under a new transition to democracy.

(Reporting by Dan Whitcomb and Eric Beech; Editing by Stephen Coates)

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