The International Criminal Court (ICC) is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for the international crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression, intended to complement, not replace national judicial systems, it can exercise its jurisdiction only when national courts are unwilling or unable to prosecute criminals. (Photo credit: Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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On October 6, 2025, Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court (ICC) delivered its first conviction in the Situation in Darfur, Sudan, some two decades after the scorched-earth campaign that left hundreds of thousands dead in the region. The Trial Chamber I unanimously found Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (Ali Kushayb) guilty of 27 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes and for his role in attacks against the Fur, Masalit and other non-Arab communities between August 2003 and March 2004 in West Darfur. At all relevant times, Ali Kushayb was a senior leader of the pro-government Janjaweed militia. The case also represents the first conviction for gender-based persecution at the ICC.
The scorched-earth campaign refers to the genocidal atrocities from the beginning of this century. Beginning in 2003, the Government of Sudan and an Arab militia active in Sudan, particularly in the Darfur region, Janjaweed, systematically attacked non-Arab communities, primarily the Masalit, Fur, Barti and Zaghawa, burning entire villages, and committing systematic murder, rape, and displacement — all under the false pretext of targeting rebels. Despite clear evidence, the international community largely failed to take concrete measures to protect the populations at risk.
In March 2005, the U.N. Security Council referred the situation in Darfur to the ICC for investigations into allegations of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. It was the first time the U.N. Security Council successfully referred a situation to the ICC. In 2009 and 2010, the ICC issued arrest warrants for former Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir. Omar Al-Bashir was the first sitting President to be wanted by the ICC, and the first person to be charged by the ICC for the crime of genocide. Neither of the two warrants of arrest against him has been enforced, and he remains “at large.”
The landmark judgment follows Ali Kushayb’s surrender in the Central African Republic and transfer to the ICC’s custody on June 9, 2020. He initially appeared before the ICC on June 15, 2020. He was suspected of 31 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Five years later, Ali Kushayb was guilty beyond any reasonable doubt of the following crimes:
- as a direct perpetrator for murder and torture as crimes against humanity and war crimes, as well as outrages upon personal dignity as a war crime and persecution as a crime against humanity.
- as a co-perpetrator, for the joint commission with Janjaweed and/or Government of Sudan Forces, in relation to at least 200 captives and/or detainees during the Mukjar and Deleig Operations, of murder, attempt murder and torture as war crimes and crimes against humanity, outrages upon personal dignity as a war crime, and persecution as a crime against humanity.
- for ordering the Janjaweed to commit, during the Kodoom and Bindisi Operation, murder and rape as war crimes and crimes against humanity, attack against a civilian population, outrages upon personal dignity, pillaging and destroying the enemy’s property as war crimes; and forcible transfer of population, persecution and other inhuman acts as crimes against humanity.
Among the findings of the landmark judgment was the finding of rape as a war crime and a crime against humanity, among other gender-based crimes. In this regard, the Chamber found that the attack resulted in the commission of rapes of women and girls, causing profound physical, cultural and social harm to victims. It further found that Ali Kushayb was guilty of the crime against humanity of persecution of males from the Fur tribe on political, ethnic and gender grounds.
The Chamber did not enter a conviction on four counts, considering that the criminal conduct underlying these counts was already covered by other counts for which a conviction was pronounced.
The judgment follows a thorough investigation. The Prosecution relied on the testimonies of 81 witnesses and 1,521 items of evidence out of the total 1,861 submitted to the Chamber, including documents from the Government of Sudan and the United Nations, satellite images, photographs, videos, and social media posts.
As the next steps, the Chamber will impose on Ali Kushayb the sentence and also a phase dedicated to the reparations to victims will be opened.
The conviction comes as Darfur and Sudan more broadly are engulfed in a brutal conflict between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2023. The last few years of the violent conflict have seen evidence of mass killings and ethnically targeted attacks in Darfur, suggesting that yet another genocide may be afoot. In January 2025, the then Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that, based on his assessment, members of the RSF and allied militias had committed genocide in Sudan during this new conflict. The ICC confirmed that the alleged crimes committed since April 2023 are within the jurisdiction of the Court and will be looked into as well. Commenting on the conviction, Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan stated that: “The conviction of Mr Abd-Al-Rahman is a crucial step towards closing the impunity gap in Darfur. It sends a resounding message to perpetrators of atrocities in Sudan, both past and present, that justice will prevail, and that they will be held accountable for inflicting unspeakable suffering on Darfuri civilians, men, women and children.”