The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday issued a conviction against Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-al-Rahman, known as “Abd-al-Rahman Kushayb,” one of five Sudanese nationals accused by the Court of committing war crimes and crimes of genocide in the Darfur region of western Sudan.
اضافة اعلان
The Court ruled that “Kushayb” is responsible for several crimes, including rape, murder, and torture, which took place in Darfur between 2003 and 2004.
Alongside Kushayb, the ICC accuses four other individuals of involvement in these crimes: ousted Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir; his Defense Minister, Abdel Rahim Muhammad Hussein; Interior Minister Ahmed Muhammad Haroun; and Abu Garda, a field commander in an armed faction that fought against the Sudanese government in the region.
“Janjaweed Leaders”
Kushayb is the only one among them who voluntarily surrendered to the Court in 2020, and was later convicted on multiple charges. So who is Abd-al-Rahman Kushayb?
Kushayb, considered one of the Arab tribal leaders in Darfur, was born around 1957 in the Wadi Saleh area of West Darfur.
He later grew up and settled in the city of Nyala, the capital of South Darfur State, specifically in a neighborhood known as “Khartoum bil-Layl.”
He entered military service and joined the Central Reserve Police, popularly known as “Abu Tira,” a force used by the ousted president’s regime to confront rebel movements in Darfur. The force had been trained and equipped with heavy weaponry similar to that of regular armies.
Kushayb became associated with forming several militias from Arab tribes widely known as the “Janjaweed.” Among the most prominent of these tribes are the Rizeigat, the Misseriya, and the Ta’aisha.
