ICC Probe Escalates: Will the El Fasher Massacre Lead to a Hemedti Arrest?
The situation in Sudan has taken a sharp legal turn as the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague announced it is taking immediate steps to collect and preserve evidence related to the recent El Fasher Massacre.
Reports emerging from El Fasher in North Darfur, Sudan, following its seizure by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), describe horrific atrocities, including mass killings, mass rape, and other crimes against humanity.
This decisive move by the ICC’s Office of the Prosecutor puts the spotlight directly on the conflict’s most senior figures and raises the critical question: will the bloodshed finally lead to an international arrest warrant for RSF commander, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as Hemedti?
The unfolding narrative of the El Fasher Massacre is no longer just a humanitarian disaster; it is now the subject of an urgent, high-level international criminal probe.
The ICC Prosecutor’s office recently expressed “profound alarm” at the reports, stating that the alleged mass killings and rapes committed during the RSF attacks are “part of a broader pattern of violence” afflicting Darfur since April 2023.
UN and humanitarian sources detail accounts of ethnically motivated executions, the deliberate targeting of civilians, and sexual violence, crimes which the court warned could be classified as war crimes and crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute.
Crucially, the ICC’s current investigation is mandated by the standing 2005 UN Security Council referral for the situation in Darfur (Resolution 1593).
This continuous mandate grants the ICC full jurisdictional authority over crimes committed within the Darfur region, setting it apart from other conflict zones in Sudan like Khartoum.
This existing legal framework is what enables the Prosecutor’s office to move swiftly to collect and preserve relevant evidence from the alleged crimes in El Fasher for use in future prosecutions.
Regarding the fate of General Hemedti, the ICC targets individuals bearing the greatest criminal responsibility.
If the investigations uncover robust evidence directly linking the RSF’s top command—including Hemedti or his deputy Abdul Rahim Dagalo, who was reportedly present during the attacks—to ordering, planning, inciting, or failing to prevent these grave international crimes, the path will be clear for new international arrest warrants.
The clear warning from the ICC that the El Fasher crimes echo the patterns of past Darfur violence, which recently resulted in the conviction of former Janjaweed leader Ali Kushayb, significantly increases the likelihood of top-tier RSF leadership being targeted.
However, the major obstacle remains the enforcement of any arrest warrants. Sudan is not a party to the Rome Statute, and the country has historically resisted full cooperation with the ICC, famously refusing to surrender former President Omar al-Bashir. An arrest warrant for Hemedti or any senior RSF leader would require immense international pressure and cooperation from neighbouring states and the global community to execute.
The RSF’s expanded control over significant parts of Darfur and North Kordofan following the fall of El Fasher further complicates the logistical and security challenges of an enforcement operation, making a near-term detention unlikely despite growing US and international pressure.
Headline Points:
• Immediate Action: The International Criminal Court (ICC) is taking “immediate steps” to collect and preserve evidence regarding alleged crimes in El Fasher, warning the violence may constitute War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity.
• Darfur Jurisdiction: The investigation falls under the ICC’s continuous jurisdiction over Darfur, mandated by the UN Security Council’s 2005 referral.
• RSF Accusations: International reports accuse the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of systematic mass killings, rape, and ethnically motivated violence following the city’s fall.
• Hemedti’s Fate: The potential for an international arrest warrant for RSF leader General Hemedti hinges on linking him directly to the atrocities, facing significant enforcement challenges.
• Humanitarian Crisis: Over 36,000 civilians have fled the area amidst warnings of famine and a deepening atrocity crisis.
These legal developments coincide with a rapidly escalating humanitarian catastrophe. The UN’s migration agency has reported that over 36,000 civilians have fled El Fasher and North Kordofan localities, often journeying on foot to already overcrowded camps like Tawila, amid widespread warnings of famine and acute shortages of food and medicine.
UN experts continue to call for immediate protection measures and an end to the culture of impunity, stressing that the El Fasher Massacre is indicative of an “atrocity crisis” deepening daily, which has resulted in one of the worst humanitarian crises of the 21st century.
