UN urges Sudan to shed light on alleged chemical attacks

2016-10-05 10:18

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New York - The United Nations peacekeeping chief on Tuesday urged Sudan to shed light on allegations of chemical weapons attacks in Darfur, but Russia said the claims must not be taken seriously.

Herve Ladsous said he was "very alarmed" by an Amnesty International report that accused Sudanese government forces of carrying out more than 30 chemical attacks this year in villages of Darfur's Jebel Marra region.

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said in response to the report released last week that it would require further information and evidence to push ahead with a formal investigation.

Ladsous told the Security Council that Khartoum - which has signed the Chemical Weapons Convention - should "maintain full co-operation with any future OPCW investigation, as it has expressed readiness to do so".

Amnesty said that between 200 and 250 people including many children may have died as a result of exposure to chemical agents during the attacks.

Formal investigation 

France and Britain have said the allegations should be thoroughly investigated, but Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said the report was unconvincing.

"Those allegations are not serious. There are so many reasons to believe they are not serious," Churkin told reporters.

Ladsous stressed that the United Nations had no evidence of the use of such weapons but that its peacekeepers from the Unamid joint mission with the African Union had been barred from traveling to those areas to verify the reports.

The peacekeeping chief said Unamid had once again asked the Sudanese government for access to the mountainous villages where the chemical attacks allegedly took place.

Following a closed-door meeting on Darfur, the Russian ambassador said the council "wouldn't mind" if the OPCW decided to open a formal investigation.

Churkin, whose country holds the council presidency this month, said a team from Unamid could also be dispatched to the area and could "come to the conclusion that those reports were not accurate."

Up to 194 000 people have been displaced in Jebel Marra since mid-January when the Sudanese army launched a military campaign against the rebel Sudan Liberation Army - Abdul Wahid (SLA/AW) group, the United Nations says.

Darfur has been engulfed in a conflict since 2003 when ethnic minority groups took up arms against President Omar al-Bashir's Arab-dominated government, which launched a brutal counter-insurgency.

At least 300 000 people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced, the United Nations says.

The most predominant feature seen on this victim is extensive sloughing off of the outer layer of the skin adjacent to areas of apparently unaffected skin. This photograph was taken at least one week after exposure. The victim was described as wearing clothing when exposed, so these wounds are likely chemical in nature. Exposure to high concentrations of a chemical warfare blister agent (vesicant) like sulphur mustard, and other forms of extreme skin trauma, can lead to skin sloughing. Some subtle aspects of the sloughing seen here may be atypical of blister agent exposure and indicate that exposure to other chemicals or a combination of chemicals could be responsible. 2016 ©Amnesty International

This photo was taken of a victim who had walked through an area that was bombed. The sole of the right foot shows two lesions. One is oval with smooth edges to which strands of cotton can be seen adhering. The other circular wound has a red base and clear edges to which are attached residual traces of skin. These wounds are consistent with exposure to a chemical warfare blister agent (vesicant) such as sulphur mustard but they are atypical in some ways for that kind of exposure and might have been caused by exposure to other chemicals or a combination of chemicals. 2016 ©Amnesty International

This victim's right arm shows large circular lesions with some scarring. The top layer of skin from one of the wounds has come off showing healing skin. These wounds appear to be healing normally. There are also pimple-like nodules seen between these scars, and there is a linear scar on the top of the hand near the wrist. This photo was taken two weeks after exposure. The circular nature of these lesions is consistent with healing blisters that might be observed after exposure to a chemical warfare blister agent (vesicant) such as sulphur mustard. These wounds are atypical in some ways for blister agents and might have been caused by exposure to other chemicals or a combination of chemicals. 2016 ©Amnesty International