The highest court of the United Nations rejected a case by Sudan accusing the United Arab Emirates of having violated the Convention of the Genocide by arming and funding the rapid support forces (RSF) in the current civil war in Sudan.
The conflict killed tens of thousands, moved 12.6 million according to the UN, and caused famine in large parts of the country.
The World Food Program says that nearly 25 million people – half of the Sudan population – are faced with extreme hunger.
The judges of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) judged that they lacked jurisdiction to hear the case.
Although Sudan and the United Arab Emirates are signatories of the 1948 genocide agreement, water has a warning in the section which grants its competence to the ICJ, effectively protecting it from the procedure under this clause.
Sudan had asked the court in March of emergency orders – known as provisional measures – calling on the United Arab Emirates to prevent acts of violence and other crimes targeting the Masalit ethnic group.
The water firmly rejected the allegations and disputed the admissibility of the case, marking the move of a political maneuver.
“This decision is a clear and decisive affirmation of the fact that this case was completely baseless. The conclusion of the court that it is without jurisdiction confirms that this case should never have been carried,” said Reem Keit, a senior official of the Foreign Ministry of the United Arab Emirates.
“The facts speak for themselves: the United Arab Emirates are not responsible for the conflict in Sudan. On the contrary, the atrocities committed by the parties at war are well documented.”
Legal experts had predicted that the case would be thrown due to the water reserve, which limits the authority of the court on disputes under the genocide agreement.
Sudan has been engulfed in a brutal internal conflict since April 2023, when the tensions between the army and the paramilitary RSF broke out in a large -scale war.
The fighting began in the Khartoum capital and spread across the country, with at least 20,000 people killed, although the real number is probably much higher.
The two parties were accused of generalized abuse against civilians.
The water, an American ally, have repeatedly accused of having provided weapons to the RSF, although it continues to deny any involvement.
