The International Criminal Court (ICC) has handed a 20-year prison sentence to Sudanese militia commander Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, widely known as Ali Kushayb, for his role in atrocities committed during the Darfur conflict more than two decades ago.
Kushayb, 76, was convicted in October on 27 charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, making him the first individual tried by the ICC for crimes linked to the Darfur crisis. The charges stem from deadly attacks carried out in 2003 and 2004.
As a top leader of the Janjaweed, a government-backed militia, Kushayb directed and participated in brutal operations that involved burning villages, killing civilians, and orchestrating widespread sexual violence. The Janjaweed’s actions contributed to the deaths of hundreds of thousands and displaced millions across Darfur.
‘He commanded — and participated in — the atrocities’
Dressed in a light blue suit, Kushayb listened silently as Judge Joanna Korner delivered the ruling. The court determined that he not only issued orders but personally joined in violent assaults on non-Arab communities.
Judge Korner noted that Kushayb instructed his fighters to “wipe out” entire populations and to “leave no one alive.”
During the trial, survivors recounted harrowing stories of villages set ablaze, men and boys executed, and women subjected to sexual slavery.
A conflict with deep and lasting wounds
The Darfur conflict (2003–2020) is regarded as one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters. The Sudanese government armed the Janjaweed to crush uprisings by non-Arab groups, prompting accusations of genocide and ethnic cleansing.
Today, the region is once again engulfed in violence amid Sudan’s ongoing civil war between the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) a group that evolved directly from the Janjaweed. International observers, including the US and UK, have accused the RSF of ethnic cleansing since 2023 allegations it denies.
Will the ICC verdict change anything?
The court said the sentence aims to deliver both justice and deterrence in light of Sudan’s renewed violence. But experts remain skeptical.
Dr. Matthew Benson-Strohmayer, Sudan Research Director at the London School of Economics, noted that both past and present conflicts share patterns of militia-led terror and systematic sexual violence, expressing hope but little optimism that the ruling would influence the situation on the ground.
Meanwhile, most survivors of the original Darfur conflict still live in displacement camps. Several ICC arrest warrants remain unexecuted including one for former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, wanted for genocide but currently believed to be in military custody.
