Sudan gives UN list of 30 Darfur militiamen suspected of rights abuses

KHARTOUM, Aug 22 (AFP) — The Sudanese government has given the United Nations Human Rights Comission a list of 30 members of state-sponsored militias in Darfur who are suspected of serious abuses, including rape, Khartoum dailies said Sunday.

The list, the first concrete admission by Khartoum of major rights violations by its militia allies in Darfur, was handed over to the commission’s international observer, Emanuel Akoy, by Justice Minister Ali Mohammed Osman Yassin, the papers said.

Rape was among an array of accusations levelled against the 30, despite longstanding denials by Sudanese officials of rights watchdog accusations that rape was being used systematically as a weapon in the suppression of the 18-month-old armed rebellion by ethnic minorities in Darfur.

Penalties against named militia commanders were among possible sanctions against Sudan canvassed by Washington at the United Nations last month before the Security Council decided to give Khartoum until August 29 to take action or face unspecified “measures”.