ICC hands 20-year sentence to Sudan militia leade ‘Ali Kushayb’
The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday sentenced former Sudanese militia leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd al-Rahman, known as Ali Kushayb, to 20 years in prison for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Darfur in 2003-2004.
The ICC unanimously imposed the sentence after Abd al-Rahman was found guilty on October 6 of 27 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes, including attacks against civilians, murder, torture, rape, pillaging, destruction of property, persecution, and forcible transfer of population, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
These crimes occurred during the Kodoom and Bindisi operations and other related military campaigns.
The court noted it would have imposed a longer sentence if not for mitigating factors, such as his age, good conduct in detention and during trial, and his voluntary surrender to the court, though these factors were given “only limited weight.” The time Abd al-Rahman spent in detention—from his voluntary surrender on June 9, 2020, until the judgment—will be deducted from his sentence.
Kushayb had been confirmed on charges by the ICC in 2021 after voluntarily surrendering in the Central African Republic.
Darfur has been the site of a brutal conflict between the Sudanese government and three rebel movements since 2003, leaving 300,000 people dead and approximately 2.5 million displaced, according to UN figures.
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