Sudan govt denounces US sanctions as 'immoral'

 

Sudan's army-aligned foreign ministry rejected as "immoral" US sanctions declared on Thursday against army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, saying that they "lack the most basic foundations of justice and transparency".

In a statement, it said the sanctions "express only confusion and a weak sense of justice", after 21 months of war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, in which the foreign ministry said Burhan was "defending the Sudanese people against a genocidal plot".

On Thursday, the US Treasury Department announced sanctions against Burhan, accusing the army of attacking schools, markets and hospitals and using food deprivation as a weapon of war.

It came a week after the US slapped sanctions on RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, accusing his group of committing genocide.

Sudan's foreign ministry on Thursday said the US's "flawed decision cannot be justified by claiming neutrality", saying it amounts to "support of those committing genocide".

Since April 2023, the war between the army and the RSF has killed tens of thousands, uprooted more than 12 million people and pushed hundreds of thousands into famine.

Both sides have been accused of targeting civilians and indiscriminately shelling residential areas, with the RSF specifically accused of ethnic cleansing, systematic sexual violence and laying siege to entire towns.