Human Rights Watch documents Rapid Support Forces’ acquisition of European weapons and criticizes France’s Troubling Silence on the UAE Role in Sudan

London – Sudanhorizon
The international human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called on France to suspend arms sales to the UAE and to support the European sanctions that have begun to be imposed on the Rapid Support Forces militia.
In a report titled “France’s Troubling Silence on the UAE’s Role in Sudan,” the organization asked, “How many more massacres must occur in Sudan before France breaks its silence regarding the UAE’s support for the Rapid Support Forces (RSF)?”
The organization warned that, more than three years after the outbreak of war in Sudan, the threat of new mass atrocities looms as the RSF, a rebel group that has committed war crimes and crimes against humanity across Sudan, attempts to besiege El Obeid, the largest city in the Kordofan region, which shelters hundreds of thousands of displaced people.
The organization noted that in recent weeks, drone strikes on key civilian infrastructure, such as power stations and fuel depots, have caused an unprecedented water crisis in the city. A new siege would be even more devastating for civilians, who have been systematically targeted by the RSF militia in such attacks. Several UN agencies have sounded the alarm.

The organization pointed out that despite France – along with other EU countries and the UK – Last month, the UAE expressed “grave concern,” but, according to the organization, used “evasive language such as ‘external support’ and called on ‘those fueling the war to stop.’” The UAE was never mentioned, despite mounting evidence of its crucial role in enabling the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to commit their crimes—evidence that is difficult to dispute.
The organization revealed that its team spent over a year investigating one aspect of this Emirati support: the recruitment of Colombian fighters to fight alongside the RSF. The team stated that what we uncovered far exceeds what we had imagined: it is believed that more than 1,000 Colombian fighters were deployed to Darfur. They were present, according to six witnesses we interviewed, when the RSF committed mass killings and rapes in October 2015, during their takeover of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur.”
The organization added that these Colombians were transported to Sudan as part of a vast and complex covert operation involving at least four countries and all evidence points to it being supported by the UAE government, one of France’s closest strategic partners in the Middle East and one of the largest purchasers of French weapons.
It continued that these former Colombian soldiers were recruited in Colombia through a Colombian company, then traveled to the UAE on commercial flights—some transiting through France—before receiving training at at least two Emirati military bases. One of them told us that, along with other fighters, he was taken directly to a base upon arrival in the UAE without going through passport control at the airport. These Colombians were then transported to Darfur via Chad, southeastern Libya, and the Puntland region of Somalia, all areas controlled by UAE allies.
The organization asserts that in Darfur, they trained children recruited by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia, providing these forces with rare skills, particularly in drone operation, to support their horrific 18-month siege of El Fasher, which starved the civilian population. No one knows the number of civilians killed in attacks deliberately targeting them, based on factors including ethnicity, as they attempted to flee en masse.
The organization added that the Abu Dhabi-based International Security Services Group (ISAG) was managing the operation until its role was exposed. The company boasted of being the only private firm providing armed services to the UAE government. HRW research shows that the company has multiple connections to the highest levels of the UAE government.
The organization sarcastically notes that while UAE authorities deny this, among Western diplomats, no one is fooled. Within the corridors of international organizations and ministries, Emirati support for the RSF is an open secret. Yet, France refrains from exerting any public pressure on the UAE.
The organization France appears to be prioritizing the protection of its economic, political, and commercial relations over the protection of civilians in Sudan, 14 million of whom have had to leave their homes and 4 million to flee the country. France’s leaders are setting aside the principles they claim to uphold and the regional stability that the UAE’s actions are profoundly undermining.
The organization notes that the French government’s silence is becoming increasingly apparent because French military equipment—the “Galex,” a passive defense system manufactured by the French company Lacroix Defense in collaboration with Nexter, and mounted on an armored vehicle manufactured by the UAE’s state-owned Edge Group—has fallen into the hands of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), despite the fact that its sale to the UAE military explicitly prohibited its re-export to third parties.
The organization stated that “this is one of three cases we have documented in which weapons and military equipment manufactured in Europe and sold to the UAE military were diverted to the RSF in violation of end-user agreements.”
The organization expresses its astonishment that, despite all this, “France continues to export its weapons to the UAE.” The organization states: “France should publicly condemn the actions of its ally, the UAE, in Sudan. It should also suspend arms and equipment deliveries to the UAE and halt bilateral military cooperation, given the proven risk of these weapons being diverted to the Rapid Support Forces.”
The organization also called on France to take action within the European Union and the UN Security Council to investigate the role of the Global Security Services Group and its CEO.
The UN called for sanctions against Mohammed Hamdan al-Zaabi and, where appropriate, for their role in sending Colombian fighters to Darfur, a clear violation of the UN arms embargo on Darfur.
The international organization concludes its report by stating that “Civilians in El Obeid and across the rest of Sudan are in a critical situation. The silence and inaction needs to end.”

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