The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned the leader of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) on Thursday, emphasizing its commitment to end the current military conflict in Sudan.
OFAC sanctioned SAF commander Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, stating that the leader is “choosing war over good-faith negotiation and de-escalation.” OFAC also sanctioned Ahmad Abdalla, a Sudanese-Ukrainian national involved in weapons procurement on behalf of the SAF’s Defense Industries System (DIAS), as well as his company Portex Trade Limited.
The Treasury Department stated:
As a result of today’s action, all property and interests in property of the designated persons described above that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. In addition, any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC or exempt, U.S. sanctions generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons.
OFAC’s actions were taken in compliance with Executive Order 14098, which was signed by US President Joe Biden in 2023. Violations of the sanctions may result in civil or criminal penalties in the US in accordance with Appendix A of part 501 of Title 31 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
The Treasury Department noted that Burhan has been involved in a multitude of lethal attacks against civilians. In October 2021, Burhan and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commander Mohammad Hamdan Daglo Mousa co-led a military takeover, but fell out over plans for a transition back to civilian rule in April 2023, precipitating the current conflict. Since then, Burhan has refused to participate in international peace talks. The Treasury Department also stated that the SAF has engaged in indiscriminate bombings of civilian infrastructure under Burhan’s leadership, such as attacks on schools, markets, and hospitals.
In December 2021, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken determined that members of SAF had committed war crimes. This determination was made due to the targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure, the execution of civilians, SAF’s use of food deprivation as a war tactic, and its deliberate obstruction of the free flow of emergency humanitarian aid to the people of Sudan.
In response to the sanctions, Blinken stated: “[T]hese sanctions underscore the U.S. view that neither man is fit to govern a future, peaceful Sudan. The United States remains committed to holding accountable those responsible for atrocities committed in Sudan and to supporting a democratic, civilian transition.”
Sudan is experiencing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with the UN noting the situation as a “crisis of staggering scale and cruelty.” In December 2024, the UN found that certain areas in Sudan were experiencing a famine, and the organization projected the issue to expand to other regions. The UN also found that attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure had killed over 782 civilians in El Fasher, the capital of Sudan’s North Darfur state, between May 2024 and December 2024. International organizations have urged the SAF and RSF to cease hostilities and permit humanitarian assistance to the civilian population.
