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According to the New York Times, citing two US officials, Sudan’s military has used chemical weapons on at least two occasions against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) during the ongoing civil war.
Some shit you should know before you read: In April of 2023, a civil war erupted in Sudan between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), triggered by a power struggle following the 2019 ousting of dictator Omar al-Bashir. The conflict, rooted in disagreements over merging the RSF into the national army and controlling the country, quickly spiraled into widespread violence, forcing many to flee their homes and plunging the nation into a deep humanitarian crisis. Both sides have committed horrific acts, particularly in places like Darfur, where old ethnic tensions have led to the genocide of civilians.

What’s going on: In their report, The New York Times revealed that Sudan’s military has deployed chemical weapons at least twice against the RSF in remote areas of the country. According to two US officials familiar with the situation, the attacks were reportedly authorized by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Sudan’s military chief. While specific locations where the weapons were used remain undisclosed, the officials expressed growing concerns that these chemical agents could soon be deployed in heavily populated areas such as the capital, Khartoum.
Digging Deeper: According to military analysts, Sudan’s chemical weapons program is thought to be limited to a small, highly secretive group within the military, with little publicly available information about its scope or capabilities. The program likely originated during the regime of former President Omar al-Bashir, who faced accusations of using chemical weapons in the Darfur conflict. While the specific types of chemical agents in Sudan’s arsenal remain unclear, experts suggest they likely include blister agents such as sulfur mustard and other toxic compounds designed to incapacitate or kill.

This all comes as the United States imposed sanctions on RSF leader Mohammad Hamdan Daglo Mousa (Hemedti) last week. At the time, Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Hemedti and the RSF of committing genocide, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing during Sudan’s ongoing civil war. In a statement, Blinken said, “The RSF and allied militias have systematically murdered men and boys — even infants — on an ethnic basis, and deliberately targeted women and girls from certain ethnic groups for rape and other forms of brutal sexual violence.” He added that the atrocities also include denying civilians access to lifesaving humanitarian aid and targeting individuals fleeing the violence.