The Department of State is today designating Sudan's Former Minister of State for the Interior under the Omar al Bashir regime, Ahmad Mohammad Harun, under the War Crimes Rewards Program. Harun is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in Darfur between 2003 and 2004. During this time, Harun stands accused of recruiting, mobilizing, funding, and arming the notorious Janjaweed militia, a precursor to the Rapid Support Forces, and participating in atrocities, including murder, rape, torture, forcible transfer of population, persecution, and other inhumane acts. It is critical that Harun be found and that he appear before the ICC to face the charges against him.
Lasting peace in Sudan requires justice for victims and accountability for those responsible for human rights abuses and violations, both past and present. There is a clear and direct connection between impunity for abuses under the Bashir regime, including those of which Harun is accused, and the violence in Darfur today. Indeed, we are seeing some of the same perpetrators victimizing some of the same communities in ways that are an ominous reminder of the horror unleashed twenty years ago. We welcome the ICC Prosecutor's announcement that he is investigating the ongoing violence and urge all States to cooperate with the ICC in its Darfur investigation.
