The United Arab Emirates issued a strong denial of allegations that it supplied Chinese-made weapons to Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group engaged in a brutal civil war against the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) since April 2023.
The accusations, detailed in a report by Amnesty International, claim the UAE provided sophisticated weaponry, including Chinese GB50A guided bombs and 155mm AH-4 howitzers, to the RSF, fueling violence in Darfur and Khartoum. The UAE’s foreign ministry called the claims “utterly false” and “baseless,” asserting its commitment to peace and humanitarian aid in Sudan, where it has delivered $100 million in relief since 2023.
The Amnesty report, based on video footage and photos from RSF operations, highlighted the UAE as the only known importer of AH-4 howitzers from China, per a 2019 deal. Sudan’s government escalated the issue by filing a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on March 21, 2025, accusing the UAE of complicity in genocide through arms supplies, citing violations of the 1948 Genocide Convention.
Sudan’s acting justice minister claimed UAE support enabled RSF atrocities, including 24,000 deaths and 11.3 million displacements. The UAE countered that Sudan’s ICJ case is “political theatre,” noting its reservation to the Genocide Convention’s jurisdiction clause, which legal experts say may block the case.
The conflict, pitting SAF’s General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan against RSF’s Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, has triggered a humanitarian crisis, with 25 million Sudanese facing acute hunger and 640,000 in famine zones like Zamzam camp. The UAE’s alleged involvement, also noted by UN experts and U.S. officials, is tied to its strategic interests in Sudan’s gold and Red Sea ports, handling 12% of global shipping.
Despite denials, evidence of 32 Emirati flights to RSF areas between June 2023 and May 2024, tracked by the Sudan Conflict Observatory, has intensified scrutiny. The UAE insists it supports UN-led peace talks, but Sudan demands sanctions and reparations, highlighting tensions as the war enters its third year.