A former Sudanese militia leader has been detained more than 13 years after a warrant was issued for his arrest on 50 different crimes associated with the conflict in Darfur.
International Criminal Court spokesman Fadi El Abdallah announced Tuesday that the militia leader, Ali Kushayb, had been arrested after surrendering himself to authorities in a remote part of the Central African Republic. It is not immediately clear where Kushayb is being held, according to the Associated Press.
The violence in Darfur began in 2003 when rebels from the region initiated an insurgency against the Arab-majority Sudanese government. The country, which was then led by Omar al Bashir, responded by allying with Arab militias known as the janjaweed. The janjaweed have been accused of killing and raping thousands of villagers. It is estimated some 300,000 people died in the carnage.
Kushayb is accused of leading thousands of janjaweed militiamen, according to the ICC. The court has also said Kushayb “personally participated in some of the attacks against civilians” and “enlisted fighters, armed, funded and provided food and other supplies to the janjaweed militia under his command.”
A State Department spokesperson told the Washington Examiner that it had received reports that Kushayb was in custody.
“Accountability is essential for achieving a stable and lasting peace in Sudan. Ali Kushayb must be held accountable for his alleged abuses. The people of Darfur, victims, survivors, and their families deserve justice,” the spokesperson said.
Kushayb faces life in prison if convicted of the charges, which include murder and rape. His arrest warrant was first issued by the ICC in 2007.
“Today is a landmark day for justice for victims of atrocities committed across Darfur and their families,” said Elise Keppler of Human Rights Watch. “The world watched in horror as Sudan’s government carried out brutal attacks on Darfur civilians, killing, raping, burning and looting villages, starting in 2003. But after 13 years, justice has finally caught up with one major fugitive of the crimes.”
The news of Kushayb’s arrest comes after another prominent international fugitive was recently captured. Felicien Kabuga, 84, was arrested last month in a Paris suburb 26 years after he allegedly financed the genocide of an estimated 800,000 men, women, and children in Rwanda. Kabuga was indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in 1997 on seven counts of genocide and a slew of other charges.
