US sanctions Sudanese Islamist groups amid civil war

A destroyed military vehicle and bombed buildings in Khartoum, Sudan, as the army retakes ground and some displaced residents return to the ravaged capital. [Reuters]

The United States has imposed sanctions on Sudanese Islamist groups and Finance Minister Jibril Ibrahim, targeting networks accused of supporting military operations and human rights abuses during the country’s civil war, the US Treasury said

The sanctions cover the Al-Bara ibn Malik Brigade and Jibril, leader of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), for mobilising fighters to support the Sudanese army against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The Treasury said the groups committed abuses, including arbitrary arrests, torture, and summary executions, and received weapons and training from Iran

“Sudanese Islamist groups have forged dangerous alliances with the Iranian regime. We are deploying sanctions tools to disrupt these activities and protect US national security,” John Hurley, Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, explained

Since the conflict between the Sudan Founding Coalition (Tasis) and the army erupted in April 2023, calls have persisted to exclude the Muslim Brotherhood from Sudan’s political stage, echoing demands made after Omar al-Bashir’s ouster in 2019.

The Brotherhood has used the war to reposition itself, penetrating the military establishment and influencing army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, pushing him away from dialogue that could end the crisis

The war has killed tens of thousands, displaced nearly 14 million, and left about 25 million people in urgent need of aid, according to the United Nations (UN)

On September 14, the African Union (AU) and Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) welcomed a quartet proposal by the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt calling for a three-month humanitarian truce, a permanent ceasefire, and a nine-month transition toward civilian rule.

 The AU and IGAD said the plan was fully aligned with their roadmap for peace in Sudan and pledged readiness to work with the quartet, the Sudanese people, and international partners to end the war, safeguard sovereignty, and advance a civilian-led transition

Commenting on the developments, Sudanese activist Saad al-Din al-Sayed Mohammed al-Tayeb wrote that international and regional actors had come to recognise the intentions of Sudan’s Islamic movement.

 He argued that the army serves as its military arm and that Burhan seeks to cling to power through political manoeuvring.

Al-Tayeb warned the movement has fueled division and violence, even at the risk of Sudan’s fragmentation, but concluded it cannot survive “while clinging to violence and terrorism as an approach”