UAE’s Weapon Shipments to Sudan Allegedly Prolong Genocide, Say US Officials

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been accused by senior US officials of fueling Sudan’s genocidal war by supplying advanced weaponry — including Chinese-made drones — to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the paramilitary faction responsible for mass atrocities in Darfur. According to a Wall Street Journal investigation published earlier this week, US intelligence agencies have concluded that the UAE ‘sent increasing supplies of weapons including sophisticated Chinese drones to a major Sudanese militia this year,’ bolstering a group ‘accused of genocide and pouring fuel on one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.’ WSJ also cited separate reports compiled by the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research, which show an escalation in arms transfers from the UAE to the RSF since the spring, including ‘small arms, heavy machine guns, vehicles, artillery, mortars, and ammunition.’