Enforced Disappearance

Dr Inas Mohamed Ahmed

International law did not initially recognise enforced disappearance as a crime; rather, it evolved gradually—from acknowledging it as a dangerous phenomenon, to criminalising the act itself, and eventually establishing penalties for it.

International law scholars have not agreed on a precise date for the emergence of enforced disappearance as a crime. However, there is consensus that Adolf Hitler was the principal cause of its recognition, as evidenced by his issuance of a decree known as the “Night and Fog” decree on 7 December 1941, during the Second World War. Its purpose was to arrest individuals deemed a threat to German security in the occupied territories, transfer them secretly, and prohibit the release of any information about their fate, thereby spreading terror and intimidation among the population.

Thereafter, enforced disappearance spread as a crime across the world, especially in South American countries, where it became increasingly brutal. One international law scholar of the time, the French expert Louis Joinet—who served on the Sub-Commission on the Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities and contributed to the drafting of the first Declaration criminalising enforced disappearance in 1988—described it as a “crime of suspended time” or a “continuous crime”, since it endures for as long as the victim remains detained and concealed.

States were unable to combat enforced disappearance effectively through national laws or domestic legislation, so they turned for a long time to regional protocols and customary international norms. Eventually, the United Nations stepped in, safeguarding many rights and addressing the crime directly, recognising it as an international crime and classifying it as a crime against humanity.

As a result, the United Nations adopted the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance in 1992, which prohibited the practice even in exceptional circumstances such as war.

This was followed in 1994 by the Inter-American Convention on Forced Disappearance of Persons, a response to the crime’s spread of the crime across several countries in the Americas, and the only regional treaty in this field. In 2001, the UN Commission on Human Rights established a working group to prepare a legally binding international convention, which culminated in the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. Adopted by the United Nations on 20 December 2006, it entered into force on 23 December 2010.

The 2006 Convention is one of the strongest international instruments. It defines enforced disappearance and sets out the legal measures states must take when the crime occurs, ensuring justice, dignity for victims and their families, and protection of their legal rights.
Similarly, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court classifies enforced disappearance among the crimes punishable under its jurisdiction, underscoring the gravity of this offence.

International law has continued to address enforced disappearance through three main frameworks: international human rights law, international humanitarian law, and international criminal law—all converging on the criminalisation of the act and the pursuit of justice through fair trial, without allowing perpetrators to escape accountability.

It is important to note that Article 4 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights allows a state to derogate from some human rights obligations in exceptional circumstances. However, the 2006 Convention on Enforced Disappearance established a crucial principle: no exceptional circumstance, however grave, can justify enforced disappearance. The Convention also affirms the principle of individual criminal responsibility for this crime, meaning states cannot excuse, tolerate, or turn a blind eye to it.

At the national level, Sudan acceded to the 2006 Convention in 2021, after its ratification by the interim legislature (the Sovereignty Council and the Transitional Council of Ministers). Yet, in the current war, the terrorist militia has used enforced disappearance as a weapon against civilians. Thousands have been detained in undisclosed facilities, denied contact with their families, and deliberately concealed. The militia has moved them between secret detention centres after defeats, without providing any information about whether they are alive or dead. The only available information comes from survivors or escapees.

The impact of this crime extends beyond the victims to their families and communities. Initial statistics from the International Committee of the Red Cross indicate thousands of men, women, and children—all civilians—are among the disappeared.

This file will continue to document the terrorist militia’s criminal actions, and demands for the release of those held in enforced disappearance will persist. Recording victims’ testimonies in the media about their experiences is both a moral and legal necessity to ensure their rights, safeguard their families, and prevent impunity by holding perpetrators to account. It also reinforces calls for activating international mechanisms and designating the rebel militia as a terrorist organisation.

I hope that the issue of enforced disappearance will be among the files presented by Sudanese Prime Minister Dr Kamal Idris at the United Nations General Assembly in New York. This is particularly pertinent after António Guterres, Secretary-General of the UN, stated at the opening of the 80th UNGA session on Tuesday, 23 September 2025: “Civilians in Sudan are being slaughtered, starved and silenced. Impunity is the bedrock of chaos and has fuelled the worst conflicts.”

The ball is therefore now in the UN’s court; it must score a truly humanitarian goal in the net of justice and humanity.

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