By Dickson Omobola

Six African and international non-governmental organisations, in addition to four Sudanese and international coalitions comprising more than 35 organisations, have urged the United Nations Human Rights Council to take decisive action in ensuring justice and peace in Sudan.

This was said at the ongoing 60th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, where the organisations reported violations against unarmed civilians in various parts of Sudan.

In 19 official statements distributed to member states and participants, they informed the world of the reality in Sudan and called for urgent action to halt the violations and hold perpetrators accountable.

Meanwhile, the six organisations have special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council and include: the International African Culture Organisation, the Victorious Youth Movement, the One Child One Bag Association in Burkina Faso, the African Unity Association, the African Coordination for Human Rights of Armies, and Zero Poverty in Africa.

These statements were supported by four major alliances: the New Sudan Organisations Union, the Sudanese Human Rights Organisations Alliance, the Future Youth Alliance and the Euro-Mediterranean Alliance Against Impunity.

The statements focused on serious violations that constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity, based on independent field reports and live testimonies from doctors and eyewitnesses. Among the most prominent violations highlighted was the use of internationally banned chemical weapons.

The organisations also documented cases of suffocation and mass poisoning in cities such as Nyala, El Fasher and Zalingei, where toxic gas bombs, incendiary devices and cluster bombs were fired, causing skin burns and severe respiratory injuries among civilians.

The data further revealed ethnic cleansing practices, with groups such as the Fur, Zaghawa and Masalit in Darfur targeted through mass executions and the dumping of bodies in the open, accompanied by racist hate speech, constituting crimes against humanity.

As for children and vulnerable groups, the organisations documented forced recruitment and the destruction of hundreds of schools, depriving them of education. The destruction of hospitals has also led to the collapse of the health sector, leaving women and children without medical or psychological care.

The report also showed arbitrary arrests and enforced disappearances that included the kidnapping of citizens and the harassment of activists, journalists and lawyers, along with torture and enforced disappearance of detainees.

According to them, the “conflict has led to a massive displacement crisis, with more than 10 million people, mostly women and children, forcibly displaced amidst sieges on cities and the denial of aid, causing catastrophic famines.”

The organisations put forward specific demands, such as establishing an independent international investigative mechanism, referring the situation to the International Criminal Court, imposing sanctions on the leaders involved, securing safe humanitarian corridors, providing international protection for civilians, supporting transitional justice, a comprehensive political transition, enhancing protection for human rights defenders, and halting attacks on vital facilities.