WASHINGTON, US
The White House announced
Thursday that it will impose sanctions against key defense companies and people
who “perpetuate violence” in Sudan as the
warring sides failed to abide by a cease-fire agreement in the
northeastern African nation.Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan visits the troops in Khartoum, Sudan.
New visa restrictions apply to
officials from the
Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces and leaders from
the former government led by Omar
al-Bashir who are “responsible for, or complicit in, undermining
Sudan’s democratic transition,” according to the State Department.
President Joe Biden on May 4 laid the groundwork for
the penalties when he issued an executive order that expanded U.S. authorities to
respond to the violence and help bring an end to the
conflict.
“These measures are intended
to hold accountable those responsible for undermining the peace, security, and
stability of Sudan,” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said
in a statement.
The Treasury Department said
in a statement that four companies were designated: Al Junaid Multi Activities
Co. Ltd., which is controlled by RSF Commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo and his
brother, RSF Deputy Commander Abdul Rahim Dagalo; United Arab Emirates-based
Tradive General Trading LLC, a front company controlled by RSF Major Algoney Hamdan
Dagalo, who also is a brother of the RSF commander; Sudan’s largest defense
company, Defense Industries System; and the arms company Sudan Master
Technology, which is linked to the SAF.
Tradive has purchased vehicles
for the RSF that have been retrofitted with machine guns and been used to
patrol the streets of Sudan. Al Junaid, also known as Algunade, operates 11
subsidiaries across multiple economic sectors, including the gold industry and
has been a vital source of revenue for the Dagalo family and the RFS.
The SAF-connected Defense
Industries System has hundreds of subsidiaries that manufacture small arms,
conventional weapons, ammunition, and military vehicles. The company uses a
complex system to hide its ownership of these subsidiaries and to obtain
favorable letters of credit from the Sudan Central Bank and frequently defaults
on those loans, according to the Treasury
Department.
“Through sanctions, we are cutting off key financial flows to both the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces, depriving them of resources needed to pay soldiers, rearm, resupply, and wage war in Sudan,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said. “The United States stands on the side of civilians against those who perpetuate violence towards the people of Sudan.”
It remains unclear how the
sanctions will impact either force’s financing or the trajectory of the
conflict, now entering its seventh week. The Biden administration says it is
coordinating with the African Union, Saudi Arabia and others in the region,
trying to press both parties to end the conflict.
Kholood Khair, the founder and
director of Confluence Advisory, a think tank in Khartoum, Sudan’s capital,
said the sanctions will need the support of other regional stakeholders.
“The U.S. was likely motivated
to act because repeat violations are undermining its clout, globally,” Khair
said.
Late Thursday, the United
States and Saudi Arabia suspended peace talks that had been taking place in the
Saudi city of Jeddah since late May. In a joint statement, the two mediating
countries said “the decision comes as a result of repeated serious violations
of the short-term ceasefire and recent ceasefire extension” on Monday.
Sudan’s military had suspended
its participation in talks the previous day.
The fighting between the
Sudanese military, led by Gen.
Abdel-Fattah Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces, broke out in mid-April.
The violence has killed at least 866 civilians, according to a Sudanese doctors
group, though the actual toll is likely much higher.
Washington and Riyadh brokered
a cease-fire on May 21, to allow for the delivery of humanitarian assistance
and restoration of vital services. There have been seven declared cease-fires
since the conflict broke out and all have been violated.
The warring generals were the
military wing of Sudan’s democratic transition following the ouster of Islamist
leader al-Bashir in 2019, before seizing complete power in a coup in 2021.
After agreeing to restore the transition, the pair clashed over the terms of
RSF’s merger into the army, a disagreement that exploded into open conflict.
According to the U.S.-Saudi
joint statement, the countries have told both sides what they need to do to
“show a meaningful commitment to the Jeddah talks.” It also said the RSF and
the military have privately informed each other of “confidence-building
measures they want to see implemented” by the other force before resuming peace
negotiations.
Earlier in the week, the U.S.
and Saudi Arabia called out both sides for cease-fire violations, accusing the
military of continuing to carry out airstrikes and criticizing the RSF for
occupying people’s homes and seizing properties.
The fighting has reduced
Khartoum to an urban battlefield, with many districts lacking electricity and
running water. The conflict has also stoked ethnic violence in the western
Darfur region, killing hundreds there.
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