Sudan’s warring generals, army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (L) and RSF commander, General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo ‘Hemedti’. PHOTO | ASHRAF SHAZLY | AFP
The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on three companies linked to the warring parties in Sudan, the latest in a series of measures against Sudanese entities aimed at stemming a devastating nine-month war.
The businesses sanctioned are Alkhaleej Bank and Al-Fakher Advanced Works, controlled by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), and Zadna International, controlled by the Sudanese army, according to a US Treasury Department statement.
War broke out last April between the two forces, resulting in the devastation of wide swaths of the country, the killing of thousands of civilians, warnings of famine and the world’s largest internal displacement crisis.
The RSF are accused by the US of participating in an ethnic cleansing campaign in West Darfur, along with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The army, which has carried out a widespread airstrike campaign, is also accused of war crimes by the US.
Meanwhile, Zadna International was described as a “top revenue-earner” for the Sudanese army. The US Treasury Department said it continued to provide funding and was used for money-laundering.
The sanctions were imposed under a US executive order authorising sanctions on individuals who are destabilising Sudan and undermining the country’s democratic transition, the Treasury Department said.
Since the war began, the US has sanctioned the deputy head of the RSF, other major businesses owned by both sides, and other entities.