UN Court Dismisses Sudan’s Genocide Case Against UAE Over RSF Support

The United Nations’ top court has dismissed a case filed by Sudan accusing the United Arab Emirates (UAE) of violating the Genocide Convention by allegedly funding and arming the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan’s ongoing civil war.

Judges at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled they lacked jurisdiction to hear the case. Although both Sudan and the UAE are parties to the 1948 Genocide Convention, the UAE has a reservation that excludes ICJ jurisdiction under the relevant clause, effectively shielding it from such proceedings.

Sudan had requested provisional measures in March, urging the court to compel the UAE to stop supporting violence against the Masalit ethnic group. The UAE strongly rejected the accusations, calling them politically motivated and legally baseless.

“This decision is a clear and decisive affirmation that this case was utterly baseless,” said Reem Ketait of the UAE Foreign Ministry. “The facts speak for themselves: the UAE bears no responsibility for the conflict in Sudan.”

Legal experts had predicted the outcome due to the UAE’s reservation, which limits ICJ authority in such disputes.

The war in Sudan, which erupted in April 2023 between the national army and the RSF, has killed at least 20,000 people — though estimates suggest the toll may be higher — and displaced over 12.6 million. The World Food Programme reports that nearly half the country’s population is facing extreme hunger.

Despite mounting evidence of atrocities by both sides, the UAE continues to deny allegations of supplying arms to the RSF.