Khartoum – Sudan’s Anti-Terrorism and State-Directed Crimes Court has issued a summons for Rapid Support Forces (RSF) leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo “Hemedti”, his brothers Abdelrahim and Al-Gony, along with 13 other RSF commanders to appear before the court in the case of the murder of former West Darfur Governor Khamis Abkar.
On June 14, 2023, West Darfur Governor Khamis Abkar was brutally killed – kidnapped, shot, and his body mutilated. Hours before his death, Abkar had accused the RSF and allied armed groups of committing widespread violations and genocide in El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur.
A video later circulated on social media showing RSF commander Abdelrahman Juma with a group of his forces leading a detained man wearing a protective helmet that obscured his features. Local media claimed this was Governor Khamis Abkar.
Another horrific video showed Abkar’s mutilated body, bloodied and shot in the head and other parts of his body. A group wearing RSF uniforms was seen celebrating his death as he lay on the ground. The video did not show the faces of this group.
The RSF denied involvement in the assassination of West Darfur Governor Khamis Abkar, accusing rogue elements of kidnapping and killing him. They claimed they had tried to protect him at his request and move him to a safe place, but that large numbers of rogue groups returned and managed to kill him.
In this context, the Anti-Terrorism and State-Directed Crimes Court – a specialized Sudanese court – issued a summons on Friday for 16 RSF leaders, headed by “Hemedti”, requiring them to appear before the Port Sudan court in the Grand Criminal Court hall on April 20 in the case of the murder of West Darfur Governor Khamis Abkar.
The court stated that if the accused do not appear, the case referred to the court by the National Committee for Investigation of Crimes and Violations of National Law and International Humanitarian Law will proceed in absentia under Article 1/1/134 of the Criminal Procedure Act of 1991.
The summons was issued under the powers granted to the court by Article 2/134 of the Sudanese Criminal Procedure Act of 1991, amended 2025, and based on Criminal Case No. 5614/2023 according to the Criminal Law of 1991, amended 2020.
The decision also comes under the provisions of the Sudanese Anti-Terrorism Act of 2001, the Cybercrime Act of 2018 amended 2020, and the Armed Forces Act of 2007, referred to the court by the National Committee for Investigation of Crimes and Violations of National Law and International Humanitarian Law for their trial in absentia for the assassination of West Darfur Governor Khamis Abdullah Abkar.
In addition to “Hemedti” and his brothers, the list of accused includes prominent RSF commanders, including the RSF commander in the West Darfur sector Abdelrahman Juma, the head of West Darfur administration Tijani Al-Taher Karshom Bellah, and leaders in the armed organization Idris Hassan Ibrahim Haroun, Hamdan Al-Ghali Aseel, Abdelrahman Masar Aseel, and Omar Mohamed Aseel Al-Gony, among others.
In June 2024, the National Committee for Investigation of War Crimes and RSF Violations filed about 12,400 lawsuits against RSF elements, including the assassination of the West Darfur governor and the attack on Gezira State.
Since September 2023, the United States has imposed a series of successive sanctions targeting a number of RSF leaders gradually, up to its leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo “Hemedti”, accusing them of committing a range of war crimes, including the RSF forces led by Abdelrahman Juma kidnapping and killing West Darfur Governor Khamis Abkar and his brother on June 14 of the year before last.
The UN mission in Sudan at the time noted that Abkar’s killing indeed came just hours after his public statements condemning the actions of the RSF.
It said that convincing eyewitness accounts attributed this act to Arab militias and RSF forces, although the RSF informed the mission denying their involvement.
The UN Human Rights Office warned at the time that the conflict in West Darfur had taken on an ethnic dimension, noting that the governor’s assassination came hours after he criticized the RSF in a television interview about the ongoing attacks by the RSF and allied groups on El Geneina city.
It emphasized the need to hold all those responsible for the governor’s death accountable, including those with command responsibility, noting that in addition to the responsibility of the direct perpetrators, Abkar was in RSF custody and it was their responsibility to keep him safe.
Source: Al-Quds Al-Arabi
