French weapons components could violate UN arms embargo on Sudan News
موفق عثمان, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
French weapons components could violate UN arms embargo on Sudan

France risks breaching the UN arms embargo on Sudan by allowing French-manufactured military technology to be incorporated into armored personnel carriers (APCs) currently being used in war zones in Darfur, Amnesty International reported on Thursday.

The Nimr Ajban APCs used by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are manufactured in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and equipped with the French-made Galix weapons system. The Galix weapons system is jointly made by French companies Lacroix Defense and Nexter (now KNDS France).

France risks not only violating the UN arms embargo on Darfur but also the European Union arms embargo imposed on the whole of Sudan since 1994. The EU embargo prohibits the sale, supply, transfer, or export of arms, including weapons and ammunition, military vehicles, and equipment, among others, to Sudan.

Amnesty International shared verified photos on social media showing several Nimr Ajban APCs destroyed or captured by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) that had the Galix weapons system visible. It then contacted Lacroix Defense, KNDS France, and the Secretariat-General for National Defence and Security in France on October 15, 2024, regarding the use of the weapons system in Sudan. A response has yet to be received.

Amnesty International has urged France to abide by international, regional, and national laws that prohibit the export of arms where there exists a substantial risk that such weapons could be used to commit serious violations of international human rights or humanitarian law. Where France cannot guarantee through export controls, including end-user certification, it should ensure that arms will not be re-exported to Sudan by not authorizing those transfers.

The ongoing war in Sudan between paramilitary factions has left more than 23,000 people killed, 33,000 injured, and more than 11 million people displaced, alongside other serious human rights violations.

Amnesty International called on the UN Security Council to expand its arms embargo on Darfur to the rest of Sudan and to strengthen its implementation, monitoring, and verification mechanisms. It also reiterated that companies, including Lacroix Defense and KNDS France, have a responsibility to respect human rights. They are required to conduct human rights due diligence throughout their entire value chain—from the point of origin to the end user—to identify, prevent, and mitigate any actual or potential involvement in human rights abuses.

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