Sudan and the United Arab Emirates will cross swords at the International Court of Justice on Thursday, with Khartoum accusing the UAE of breaking the UN Genocide Convention with its alleged support for rebel fighters.
The UAE has dismissed the case as baseless and a distraction from ending the civil war in Sudan that has killed tens of thousands, displaced millions, and caused famine in large parts of the northeast African country.
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Sudan wants ICJ judges to force the UAE to stop its alleged support for the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that have been battling the Sudanese army since 2023.
In its application to the court, Sudan charged that “the rebel RSF, with the United Arab Emirates’ unlimited support, perpetrated genocide, forcible displacement, and murder.”
It urged judges to order the UAE to make “full reparations”, including compensation to victims of the war.
Sudan said the UAE was breaching its obligations under the 1948 UN Genocide Convention established in the aftermath of the Holocaust.
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But a top UAE official, who requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive case, told AFP: “These baseless accusations are a misuse of the court’s time and practice.”
The UAE denies supplying the RSF with weapons. The US has sanctioned both sides, accusing the army of attacking civilians and the RSF of “committing genocide” in the western Darfur region.
– ‘Important questions’ –
Legal experts say Sudan’s case may founder on jurisdictional issues.
When the UAE signed up to the Genocide Convention, it entered a “reservation” to a key clause enabling countries to drag each other before the ICJ over disputes.
Sudan’s claims raise “important questions”, Michael Becker, international law expert from Trinity College Dublin, wrote in a recent piece for Opinio Juris specialist website.
“Because the UAE made a reservation to Article IX when it acceded to the Genocide Convention in 2005, the ICJ can be expected to conclude that it lacks jurisdiction over the dispute,” wrote Becker.
Sudan argued in its application that the UAE’s reservation is “incompatible” with the purpose of the Genocide Convention, which emphasises global collective responsibility to prevent the world’s worst crime.
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Lawyers for Sudan will address the court at the Peace Palace in The Hague at 10am (0800 GMT), with the UAE responding at 4pm.
The rulings of the ICJ, which hears disputes between states, are final and binding but the court has no means to ensure compliance.
Judges ordered Russia to halt its invasion of Ukraine to no avail, for example.