According to the UN Secretary General’s special representative, at least 5,000 people have died in the conflict in Sudan, but the real number is feared to be significantly higher.
The UN Joint Human Rights Office UNJHRO has received credible evidence of at least 13 mass graves in Darfur, Western Sudan.
in his statement to the UN Security Council on Wednesday in the review Working as the UN Secretary General’s special representative in Sudan Volker Perthes said that the suspected mass graves were found in the city of Geneina and its surrounding areas.
– The violence in Darfur has intensified considerably and the parties have blatantly ignored human rights and international humanitarian law, Perthes said.
According to Perthes, the mass graves are the result of attacks on civilians by paramilitary RSF forces and paramilitary Arab groups fighting alongside the country’s armed forces. The civilians who have been targeted have mainly been Masalites.
According to Perthes, the UN is collecting evidence of the events in question, which, if confirmed, would meet the hallmarks of a war crime.
Bloodshed from both sides
According to Perthes, both sides imprison and torture civilians arbitrarily. According to Perthes, information has also been received about the executions of prisoners.
In many cases, however, it was almost clear who had committed the bloodshed, Perthes said.
Perthes blamed the air force under the country’s armed forces for indiscriminate bombing. According to Perthes, sexual violence, robberies and the killing of civilians occur most in the areas controlled by the RSF forces.
– The UN will never remain neutral when it comes to war and human rights violations. We are on the side of Sudan’s civilians, women, children and vulnerable populations who are suffering the most from the conflict, Perthes said in his review.
Perthes resigned from his post
In April, an armed conflict began between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary RSF forces, which has left at least 5,000 dead and more than 12,000 wounded.
According to Perthes, the actual numbers are likely to be significantly higher.
Perthes warned that the conflict could turn into a full-scale civil war.
At the end of his review, Perthes said that he would request the resignation of the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres accepted. Sudan Armed Forces Commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has accused Perthes of bias in favor of the RSF.
The source is also the news agency AFP.