Sudan confirms talks with US over chemical weapons claims

Sudan continues to engage with the United States over allegations that it used chemical weapons during its civil war against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, according to the Sudan Tribune on October 8^th.

Sudan’s delegation at the Executive Council of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) announced that its government “continues its constructive engagement” with Washington over the accusations which were first levelled against it on May 22^nd.

At the time, Washington urged “the Government of Sudan to cease all chemical weapons use and uphold its obligations” under the Chemical Weapons Convention. Sanctions restricting all US exports and arms sales to the accused, alongside financial borrowing limits, were subsequently imposed in late June.

The Sudanese government has repeatedly denied the allegations made and even dismissed the claims as the politics of distraction. It accused Washington of seeking to divert attention from the RSF – formally declared by the US to have committed genocide – using American-made arms during the conflict.

Immediately after the rhetorical retaliation, the military chief and de facto leader of Sudan, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, formed a national committee to investigate the claims on May 29^th. The OPCW delegation affirmed that the committee remains operational despite “difficult circumstances” due to the war.

In its statement, the delegation also sought to emphasise alleged regional support for the RSF, including advanced weaponry and mercenaries that enter from Sudan’s western border.

It repeated long-standing allegations against the United Arab Emirates for smuggling arms, including drones, to the RSF via Chad and Libya in defiance of a UN Security Council arms embargo on the Darfur region.

Sudan also underscored its commitment to the Chemical Weapons Convention and “the importance of international efforts to build a world free of chemical weapons.”

However, such compliant language used does not drape the government with sufficient virtue to imply innocence, especially considering the existence of substantial enough evidence to suggest otherwise.

A France24 investigation released on October 9^th into chemical weapons use in Sudan corroborated the earlier US allegations, with images displaying the use of chlorine gas as a weapon. Such incidents were recorded on two separate occasions in September 2024, according to Human Rights Watch on October 9^th.

The use of chlorine gas in combat is prohibited under the Chemical Weapons Convention, of which Sudan is a member. It also constitutes a war crime under the Rome Statute, which sets the International Criminal Court’s jurisdiction over genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.

Sudan Tribune, Maghrebi.org, The Guardian, France24, Human Rights Watch