Sudán

Humanitarian crisis as al-Bashir fights southern rebels Ethnic, religious and regional tensions set the stage for Omar al-Bashir to take power and declare Sudan an Islamic state after 1989, and from 2003 to at least 2008 an armed conflict took place in Darfur between the Sudanese government, its Janjaweed militia allies, and rebels in the Sudanese Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). In 2010, the UN estimated that up to 300,000 people had died due to the humanitarian crisis, and that 2.7 million had been displaced to camps in Darfur with another 200,000 driven to refuge in neighboring Chad. The two sides signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005, creating an autonomous south for six years followed by a referendum on independence. South Sudan became an internationally recognized independent state in 2011. Meanwhile, the al-Bashir regime is alleged to be responsible for the commission of grave international crimes in the Blue Nile and South Kordofan states in its ongoing battle for control of the country. UN International Commission of Inquiry calls for ICC investigation of grave crimes in Darfur Allegations of grave international crimes have been made against all parties to the Darfur conflict. In January 2005, the UN Security Council received a report from the UN International Commission of Inquiry on Darfur establishing that Sudan, allied with Janjaweed militias, likely committed crimes against humanity, including murder, torture, enforced disappearance, sexual violence, pillaging, forced displacement and large-scale destruction of villages. It also found cases of murder and pillaging allegedly committed by southern rebel forces. The Commission recommended that the Security Council refer the situation in Darfur to the ICC prosecutor to investigate and identify cases for prosecution.