UN extends Sudan fact-finding mission for another year

The United Nations Human Rights Council on Wednesday extended the mandate of a fact-finding mission investigating possible war crimes in Sudan for a year, after the majority of countries voted in favor of the move. The mission was found on "reasonable grounds" to believe that war crimes have been committed by parties involved in the conflict in Sudan, according to the UN Human Rights Council Resolution, citing the killing of children and sexual violence as among these violations. The UN mission has urged the international community to take stronger measures to end the escalating violence and human rights violations in Sudan, which include the "cessation of arms exports as a crucial step" towards stifling the unrest. Expressing Khartoum's "opposition" to the move, Sudan's Permanent Representative to the UN Hassan Hamid underlined commitment to the principles of justice and accountability, saying an "international mechanism" to probe war crimes was unnecessary given the existence a national commission with the same objectives. Source: Kuwait News Agency