HRC59: Sudan's ongoing humanitarian and human rights catastrophe

HRC59: Sudan's ongoing humanitarian and human rights catastrophe

The 59th Session of the Human Rights Council

16 June to 11 July 2025

Item 2: Independent Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan Oral Update

17 June 2025

By Minna A./ GICJ

Executive Summary

The 59th Session of the Human Rights Council featured a very critical oral update on the concerning human rights situation in Sudan by the appointed mandate, the Independent International Fact Finding Mission on Sudan (FFM Sudan), which provided a horrific account of a state entrenched in an escalating humanitarian and human rights crisis. It highlighted ongoing work to fulfil the key responsibilities of the mandate: investigating violations and their root causes, preserving evidence, identifying perpetrators, collaborating with judicial and legal mechanisms, and making recommendations to support accountability as well as victims. The oral update underlined patterns of mass atrocities across Sudan, including ethnically targeted attacks, extrajudicial killings, indiscriminate bombings, systematic sexual violence, weaponization of humanitarian aid, and widespread destruction of infrastructure. The war has caused severe famine, with alarming cases of children dying from starvation due to aid blockades. In response, the Sudanese Government reaffirmed the integrity of its national investigative mechanisms and judicial systems, noting over 120,000 cases reviewed and more than 1,000 verdicts issued. This update reinforces the obligations of the international community to act urgently in upholding arms embargoes, ensuring humanitarian access, and ensuring accountability and justice for victims and survivors.

Background

The ongoing conflict in Sudan, which began on 15 April 2023, has evolved into a complex and devastating humanitarian and human rights crisis. The conflict broke out between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), led by General Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, or Hemedti. Though it began as a serious power struggle between the country’s military leadership, the conflict rapidly escalated into widespread violence affecting civilians across the country. The United Nations has estimated that over 25 million people (more than half of Sudan’s population) are in dire need of humanitarian assistance. As of June 2025, more than 10 million people have been displaced, making this the world’s largest displacement crisis. The conflict has damaged critical infrastructure with health and education systems collapsing, and has triggered mass atrocities, particularly in Darfur, Al Jazeera state, and the Kordofan region. Reports from the UN and civil society organisations have documented patterns of ethnic-based killings, systematic sexual violence, targeted attacks on hospitals and aid workers, as well as the recruitment of children by armed groups. In response to these alarming developments, the United Nations Human Rights Council established the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Sudan (FFM Sudan) through Resolution 54/2 in October 2023, with a mandate to investigate and report on the human rights violations since the outbreak of the war.

As the war enters its third year, Sudan not only faces a deepening human rights situation, but a growing threat of state collapse, mass starvation, as well as regional destabilisation. The international community’s response remains disputed, and impunity continues to shield perpetrators, both domestic and foreign, from accountability. The work of the mandate is essential for upholding international legal standards as well as amplifying the voices of victims and survivors and paving the path toward peace, justice, and accountability.

Fact-Finding Mission Sudan

The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan (FFM Sudan) was established by the United Nations Human Rights Council through resolution 54/2 adopted on 11 October 2023, as a response to the deteriorating human rights situation in the region since the beginning of the armed conflict in April 2023 (A/HRC/RES/54/2). The FFM Sudan is composed of three appointed experts and supported by a secretariat based in Nairobi, Kenya. The mandate has focus centered on both investigative and accountability mechanisms, and they are particularly tasked with:

Investigating and establishing the facts regarding alleged human rights violations and abuses, as well as international humanitarian law and refugee law that has been committed since April 2023;
Identifying, if possible, those responsible for the violations, including their command structure and any third-parties or affiliations;
Collecting and analysing evidence to uphold accountability efforts and potential utilisation of any collected material for future legal and judicial proceedings, domestically and internationally;
Providing guidance and recommendations in the promotion of justice and accountability for victims and survivors; and
Engaging and working alongside regional and international mechanisms.

As stated by chair of the mandate, Mohamed Chande Othman, during the oral update at the 59th Human Rights Council Session, the FFM has pursued its mandate roles and key responsibilities despite the significant operational limitations and constraints they faced, particularly lack of access to Sudan or non-cooperation with relevant parties. Despite that, the mission has successfully:

Conducted over 240 interviews with victims and witnesses;
Received 110 written submissions;
Verified 30 pieces of digital evidence, which include video footage;
Initiated confidential cooperation with relevant legal and judicial mechanisms;
Conducted investigative field missions to Uganda and Chad;
Held high level consultations with African Union officials in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; and
Worked alongside the International Commission of Jurists (Kenyan Sections) a three-day accountability consultation in Nairobi focused on justice, which included gender-related and sexual violence crimes.

The mandate also closely collaborates with the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) and its Joint Fact-Finding mission on Sudan, in sharing best practices and regional alignment in documenting atrocities and abuses. Despite the challenge of being seriously under-resourced, the mandate continues to play a very critical role in maintaining international scrutiny on Sudan, and amplifying the voices of survivors, preserving legal and evidentiary support for future prosecutions and transitional justice mechanisms and processes. Its work is necessary for present-day accountability and, most importantly, building foundations of sustainable peace in Sudan.

Summary of 59th Human Rights Council Session FFM Oral Update

On 17 June 2025, the mandate delivered an oral update before the 59th session of the Human Rights Council. The update was delivered by all three members of the mission, Mr. Mohamed Chande Othman (Chair), Ms. Mona Rishmawi, and Ms. Joy Ngozi Ezeilo. They provided an alarming account of the current updates regarding the situation in Sudan. The mandate emphasised the unconscionable continuation of war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces, which were characterised by:

Heavy weaponry used in populated areas, which included aerial bombardments and artillery shelling;
Civilians bearing the brunt of the violence through killings, abductions, detentions and enforced disappearances; and
Revenge cycles in newly retaken areas, further escalating instability.

Violence in El Fasher and Al Jazeera has intensified with documented massacres and airstrikes on civilian markets, as well as targeted attacks on aid workers and convoys, and on ethnic minorities such as the Kanabi community. There has also been documented evidence of summary executions and torture, such as the reprisal attacks by the RSF, one of which was the reported execution of 31 civilians in Omdurman on 27 April 2025.

Both parties were found to weaponise humanitarian aid with SAF imposing bureaucratic restrictions on the delivery aid, while the RSF looted convoys, blocked aid, and attacked displaced persons camps. Famine is emerging in regions like Darfur, where children in places like ZamZam camp are dying from starvation due to aid blockades, which were confirmed by the World Food Programme. Since April 2023, over 100 humanitarian and medical workers have been killed as well as key medical infrastructure, such as Al Obaeid International Hospital and the Saudi Hospital in El Fasher, have been deliberately targeted and damaged.

Ms. Rishmawi and Ms. Ezeilo have highlighted the widespread and systemic use of sexual violence in the region. Victims include women, girls, boys, and men, with most attacks committed in RSF-controlled areas, particularly internally displaced persons camps. Reports included documented cases of rape, gang rape, sexual slavery, forced marriages, and abduction. Unfortunately, sexual violence cases remain highly underreported due to stigma and fear, but the mission has confirmed a pattern of widespread deliberate utilisation of sexual and gender-based violence by armed groups and militias.

In cooperation with the International Commission of Jurists (Kenyan Sections), the FFM conducted a three day consultation in Nairobi, gathering 145 participants, including survivors, legal experts, and civil society representatives to discuss pathways to justice, with a day dedicated to gender-related and sexual violence crimes discussion. The consultation was attended by representatives from the African Union, the UN Special Advisor on the Responsibility to Protect, and the Joint ACHPR-UN Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan. As Ms. Ezeilo stated, a message was reiterated throughout the discussions that, “Accountability is not a luxury. It is a prerequisite for sustainable peace in Sudan.”

The mandate concluded its oral update by urging the international community to uphold the arms embargo under the UN Security Council Resolution 1556 as well as related resolutions, and to fulfill the obligations under Common Article 1 of the Geneva Conventions to ensure respect for international humanitarian law, as well as avoid any actions or policies that may risk complicity in international crimes. The FFM acknowledged the under-resourcing of its operations but has reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to amplify survivor voices, collect evidence, and ensure justice is not denied to the people of Sudan.

Response of Country Concerned, Sudan

Mr. Elfatih Tayfoor, Attorney General of Sudan and Head of the National Committee to investigate Crimes and Violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), representative of Sudan, opened by reaffirming the independence and capacity of Sudan’s national mechanisms to investigate violations and ensure justice is served. The Sudanese government, through its National Investigative Committee, asserted its commitment to upholding international legal standards and maintaining conditions for fair and just due process. The committee submitted two detailed reports highlighting its efforts and the independence of its investigations. These efforts included accessible field visits, witness interviews, and evidence collection despite the ongoing conflict. It documented a total of 120,494 cases, which included allegations of genocide and war crimes, especially attributed to what they termed as “rebel militias”. However, only 257 cases were attributed to the Sudanese Armed Forces, as per the committee statement. 3,997 of the documented cases have been referred to national courts, resulting in 1,093 convictions. The representative also claimed that widespread sexual violence was committed by rebel groups, particularly Rapid Support Forces. The national committee recorded 98 cases of rape, while the Committee on Combating Violence Against Women documented 13,092 cases of rape, including of minors. They also reported mass extrajudicial killings and child recruitment by militia groups, allegedly violating the rights of children by pushing them to armed conflict. Mr. Tayfoor emphasised the integrity and professionalism of Sudan’s judicial and legal mechanisms. He reiterated that Sudan’s legal institutions are committed to preventing impunity and ensuring accountability for all those responsible in the perpetration of crimes, especially those of armed rebel groups.

Position of Geneva International Centre for Justice

Geneva International Centre for Justice (GICJ) is gravely concerned about the escalating atrocities and human rights violations occurring in Sudan, particularly any widespread targeting of civilians, use of sexual violence as a weapon of war, and the weaponisation and blockade of humanitarian aid. We support the work of the Independent Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan and urge the full cooperation of the international community to ensure access to affected regions, proper evidence preservation, and survivor-centered justice and legal mechanisms. GICJ echoes the call for accountability as an essential aspect of building and maintaining sustainable peace in the region. We call on states to enforce the arms embargo, refrain from complicity in international law violations, and support the independent investigations to uphold the rights and dignity of Sudanese people.

Sources:

Discussion Reports

HRC59: Sudan's ongoing humanitarian and human rights catastrophe

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