Johannesburg, South Africa – The Biden administration The incoming chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Rep. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, has been criticized for “waiting” until the outgoing president had just 13 days left before announcing rebel operations in Sudan. From the bitter 21-month war, the “genocide”.
Earlier this week, Secretary of State Antony Blanken announced that members of the Sudanese rebel group, the Rapid Support Forces or RSF, had “committed genocide in Sudan.”
In a statement, Blanken said, “The United States is committed to holding those responsible for these atrocities accountable. We accuse RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Daglu Musa, known as Hamdati, of being involved in systematic atrocities against the Sudanese people. Banned from paying.”
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks with Secretary of State Anthony Blanken (R) during a trilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos in the East Room of the White House on April 11, 2024, in Washington, DC. Leader of The three countries are meeting for the first time in a trilateral summit to show solidarity as the South China Sea escalates tensions in the region. (Photo by Andrew Harnick/Getty Images.)
Blanken made his decisions, he said, because “the RSF and RSF-affiliated militias have continued direct attacks against civilians, systematically killing men and boys, even infants, on ethnic grounds. , and (intentionally) targeted women and girls as specific ethnic groups for rape and other forms of brutal sexual violence.”
“These same militias have targeted fleeing civilians, killed innocent people fleeing the conflict, and prevented remaining civilians from accessing life-saving supplies,” the secretary continued.
Blinken added that African nation “The conflict has been plagued by unrelenting brutality that has resulted in the world’s worst humanitarian disaster, with 638,000 Sudanese facing the worst famine in Sudan’s recent history, more than 30 million people Humanitarian aid is needed, and tens of thousands have died.”
Risch said the situation in Sudan has been catastrophic for more than a year, and questioned the timing of Blanken’s announcement. In a statement earlier this week, he wrote, “It has been almost a year since I introduced the resolution declaring the atrocities in Sudan to be genocide. Additionally, I first launched Global Magnitsky against RSF. Hemedti called for the imposition of sanctions 263 days ago – and so far these sanctions have not been taken advantage of.”
Fighters from the Sudan Liberation Movement, a Sudanese rebel group operating in Sudan’s Darfur state that supports army chief Abdul Fattah al-Barhan, attend a graduation ceremony in the southeastern state of Gedrif on March 28, 2024. (AFP photo via Getty Images.)
“The Biden administration waited until it had less than two weeks to approve the companies affiliated with RSF,” Risch announced, speaking to Fox News Digital. and calling for mercy for their crimes and the atrocities in Sudan as genocide.”
“This neglect to deal with the Sudan crisis weakened America’s influence in the region and the world years ago,” Risch said. Had it been in position, more lives would have been saved, and foreign proxies fueling the conflict would have been kept at bay.”
Risch added, “This war must end. Further instability in Sudan will only fuel terrorism and regional chaos, threatening global security. The United States and our allies must stop the killings and atrocities.” Efforts should be made to eliminate nefarious acts by proxies, manage migration pressures and protect strategic interests such as the Red Sea Corridor.”
UAE, other countries removed from international money laundering watch list
People board a truck as they leave Khartoum, Sudan, on June 19, 2023. Many people, including children, have been subjected to rape and other forms of sexual violence in the ongoing conflict in Sudan, attacks that amount to war crimes, the United Nations human rights office said in a new report on Friday, February 23, 2024. can be (AP Photo, File)
In his announcement, Blanken announced the new sanctions, saying, “We are also sanctioning seven companies owned by RSF. United Arab Emirates (UAE) and an individual for their role in procuring arms for the RSF.”
The Treasury Department also sent a statement, virtually simultaneously with one from State, saying that “the RSF’s ability to acquire military equipment and generate finance is fueling the conflict in Sudan.” The Treasury said a certain company in the United Arab Emirates, owned by a Sudanese national, “has provided money and weapons to the RSF.”
Other UAE companies that were sanctioned last week have been accused. Finance Department handling financial transactions, being “an integral part of RSF’s efforts to finance its operations”, and importing IT and security equipment.
A gold company in the United Arab Emirates has been sanctioned for allegedly “purchasing gold from Sudan, presumably for the benefit of the RSF.” taken, and later taken to Dubai.” Additionally, the Treasury claimed that “RSF’s procurement director and brother of RSF leader Hamdati (the Gold Company’s) bank in the United Arab Emirates maintained access to the account, which contained millions of dollars.”
Women from El Jenina, West Darfur, cry after receiving news of their missing relatives in Ardmata, as they wait for them in Audre, Chad, November 7, 2023. Ardmata was the latest site of ethnic cleansing led by the RSF and its Arab allies. Militia against the ethnic African Masalit tribe. (Reuters/Al Tayeb Siddique.)
“The United States continues to call for an end to this conflict that is putting the lives of innocent civilians at risk,” said Treasury Deputy Secretary Wally Ademu. “The Treasury Department is committed to using every tool available to hold accountable those responsible for human rights abuses of the Sudanese people.”
In response to Fox News Digital questions involving UAE-registered companies, a Foreign Ministry official fired back, saying: “The main focus of the UAE in Sudan is to address the devastating humanitarian crisis. We continue to call for an immediate ceasefire and a peaceful resolution to this man-made conflict. In this regard, the UAE has already made it very clear has done that it will not provide aid or supplies to either of the two warring parties in Sudan.”
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The official continued, “The UAE takes very seriously its role in protecting the integrity of the international financial system. We are committed to combating financial crime globally, enhancing international cooperation and addressing emerging threats.” We are committed to developing a strategy for this.”