Foreign support for RSF major reason Sudan war persists: Sudan’s prosecutor general

External support for the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) is a major reason for the prolonged war and continued violations in Sudan, the country’s prosecutor general said Monday, calling for decisive action to halt it.

Intisar Ahmed Abdelaal made the remarks during a briefing to the UN Human Rights Council’s interactive dialogue on Sudan as part of its 63rd session in Geneva, according to the Sudanese News Agency.

Abdelaal also chairs Sudan’s National Committee for Investigating Crimes and Violations of National and International Law.

“External support for the militia represents a major reason for the prolongation of the war and the continuation of violations,” she said, referring to the RSF.

She urged the council to condemn the support and take “decisive measures” to stop it.

Abdelaal renewed her call for the Human Rights Council and other UN mechanisms to support the national committee, uphold the principle of complementarity, and take immediate steps to end foreign support for the RSF.

She also reaffirmed Sudan’s rejection of external mechanisms that bypass national efforts and reiterated its opposition to the resolution establishing the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan.

On Thursday, the UN fact-finding mission said external support networks are helping fuel the war in Sudan.

The Sudanese army and the RSF have been fighting since April 2023 in a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced around 13 million, according to UN and international estimates.