The court's verdict in The Hague in the Netherlands on Monday against Ali Muhammad Ali Abd al-Rahman – known under his war alias Ali Kushayb – concerned murder, rape, and torture in the Sudanese militia's attack on the civilian population in the Darfur province in Sudan.
The crimes that Kushyab ordered and committed are described as "bestial violence". Kushayb claimed to be innocent of all 31 charges that concerned both crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Gave orders
Judge Joanna Korner read out the guilty verdicts that ultimately concerned 27 cases, and said that Kushayb "encouraged and gave orders" for the crimes. The judges were unanimous in a guilty verdict; the sentence will be announced later, but Kushayb may be sentenced to life imprisonment.
The convicted man was dressed in a suit, tie, and listened to simultaneous interpretation through headphones and received the verdict without showing any emotions.
Kushayb was said to have been a leading commander within the Janjawid militia, which was indirectly led by Sudan's then-leader Omar al-Bashir's government in Khartum.
The trial against Kushayb began in April 2022, and the verdict is seen as fundamentally important.
The ICC's long-awaited and decisive verdict for serious crimes in Darfur means a first opportunity for victims and communities terrorized by Janjawid to see some kind of justice in court, said Liz Evenson of the human rights organization Human Rights Watch after the verdict.
New wars
Around 300,000 inhabitants in Darfur were killed and over 2.7 million fled their homes during the Janjawid militia's brutal offensive.
Omar al-Bashir has since been deposed and is internationally wanted for war crimes.
The regime in Sudan after him collapsed in civil war. One of the parties in the ongoing civil war, Rapid Support Forces (RSF), consists in part of warriors from Janjawid.
The civil war between Sudan's army and RSF has claimed at least 40,000 human lives according to the WHO. Twelve million have fled their homes, and over 24 million are suffering from acute food shortages.
