US sanctions leader of Sudanese Armed Forces over war crimes, humanitarian crisis

In a press release, the Treasury Department said, "Today, the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is sanctioning Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan (Burhan), the leader of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), under Executive Order (E.O.) 14098, 'Imposing Sanctions on Certain Persons Destabilizing Sudan and Undermining the Goal of a Democratic Transition.' This action follows the designation of the leader of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohammad Hamdan Daglo Mousa (Hemedti), on January 7, 2025."

"In addition, OFAC is sanctioning one company and one individual involved in weapons procurement on behalf of the Defense Industries System (DIS), a procurement arm of the SAF that OFAC sanctioned in June 2023," the release added.

Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo emphasised the US commitment to ending the conflict in Sudan following the sanctions against Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan.

Adeyemo said, "Today's action underscores our commitment to seeing an end to this conflict. The United States will continue to use our tools to disrupt the flow of weapons into Sudan and hold these leaders responsible for their blatant disregard of civilian lives."

The Treasury further said that Burhan's SAF committed lethal attacks on civilians, including airstrikes against protected infrastructure including schools, markets, and hospitals. The SAF is also responsible for the routine and intentional denial of humanitarian access, using food deprivation as a war tactic.

"In December 2023, Secretary of State Antony Blinken determined that members of the SAF had committed war crimes. The SAF's egregious war tactics, alongside those of the RSF, are primarily responsible for one of the world's worst humanitarian crisis, where famine has been declared in five regions of the country," the release said.

Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan is the commander of the SAF. In October 2021, Burhan and RSF commander Hemedti co-led a military takeover that seized power from Sudan's civilian-led transitional government. Since then, Burhan has opposed a return to civilian governance in Sudan and has refused to participate in international peace talks to end the fighting, choosing war over good-faith negotiation and de-escalation. Under Burhan's leadership, the SAF's war tactics have included indiscriminate bombing of civilian infrastructure, attacks on schools, markets, and hospitals, and extrajudicial executions, according to the US Treasury Department.

"Burhan is being designated pursuant to E.O. 14098, for being a foreign person who is or has been a leader, official, senior executive officer, or member of the board of directors of the SAF, an entity that has, or whose members have, engaged in actions or policies that threaten the peace, security, or stability of Sudan relating to the tenure of such leader, official, senior executive officer, or member of the board of directors," the release said. (ANI)