The International Criminal Court's conviction of a Sudanese militia chief for war crimes from 2003 shows that those fighting in Sudan currently will not enjoy impunity, the UN said Monday.
The ICC on Monday found Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman guilty of rape, murder and torture carried out between August 2003 and at least April 2004 in Sudan's volatile Darfur region.
The United Nations' rights chief Volker Turk hailed the verdict as an "important acknowledgement of the enormous suffering endured by the victims of his heinous crimes, as well as a first measure of long overdue redress for them, and their loved ones".
His said the verdict resonated at a time when "similar atrocity crimes are taking place once again in Darfur, and elsewhere in Sudan".
Since April 2023, the war between Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the country's regular army has killed tens of thousands and created the world's largest hunger and displacement crisis.
"It is my earnest hope that today's verdict will serve as a fresh reminder to the perpetrators of today's crimes that there can be no impunity for mass crimes against civilians," Turk said.
"They too will be brought to justice one day for grave violations of the law."
