The Sudanese government accused the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, June 19 of exacerbating the 14-month conflict in Sudan by supplying weapons to a rival paramilitary group.
The UAE swiftly dismissed these allegations as baseless and termed them a “shameful manipulation” by one of the warring factions.
The dispute arose during a U.N. Security Council session where Assistant Secretary-General Martha Pobee cautioned about ethnic-based atrocities unfolding in Sudan’s western Darfur region. She appealed for an immediate ceasefire in El Fasher, North Darfur’s capital, currently besieged by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), to prevent further civilian suffering and safeguard vital infrastructure.
Sudan’s Ambassador, Al-Harith Mohamed, accused the RSF of instigating hostilities against the Sudanese military and civilians, allegedly aided by arms from the UAE. He asserted that Sudan possessed evidence of these arms transfers and intended to present a dossier on UAE activities to the International Criminal Court.
In response, UAE’s Ambassador Mohamed Abushahab refuted these claims as unfounded and questioned Sudan’s reluctance to engage in peace negotiations. He criticized Sudan’s approach in international forums, urging them to prioritize ending the conflict they initiated.
U.N. experts, monitoring an arms embargo in Darfur, previously reported credible evidence in January of the UAE supplying weapons to the RSF multiple times weekly from northern Chad. U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield echoed the U.S. call for external actors to cease exacerbating the conflict in Sudan through arms shipments.
Following the Security Council meeting, Sudan’s Mohamed called for stronger international condemnation of the UAE’s actions. Meanwhile, U.N. humanitarian official Edem Wosornu warned of dire conditions for 800,000 trapped civilians in El Fasher, highlighting widespread hunger, imminent famine, and ongoing violence affecting millions across Darfur.
Two decades after Darfur gained notoriety for genocide and war crimes, conflict erupted again in Sudan in mid-2023, claiming thousands of lives and displacing tens of thousands. The RSF, originally formed from Janjaweed militias by former President Omar al-Bashir, remains a central force in Sudanese politics and military operations, despite international condemnation and efforts for peace.
