THE HAGUE: Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court on Monday asked for a life sentence for a leader of the feared Janjaweed militia convicted of playing a major role in a campaign of atrocities committed in the Sudanese region of Darfur more than 20 years ago — including ordering mass executions and bludgeoning two prisoners to death with an ax.
“You literally have an axe murderer before you,” prosecutor Julian Nicholls told judges in The Hague as Ali Muhammad Ali Abd–Al-Rahman, also known as Ali Kushayb, looked on.
Last month, Abd–Al-Rahman was convicted of 27 counts, including mass murders and rapes, for leading Janjaweed militia forces that went on a campaign of killing and destruction in 2003-2004. It was the first time the court had convicted a suspect of crimes in Darfur.
“He committed these crimes knowingly, willfully, and with, the evidence shows, enthusiasm and vigor,” Nicholls said.
Abd–Al-Rahman pleaded innocent to charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity when his trial opened in April 2022 and argued he was not the person known as Ali Kushayb. The judges rejected that defense, saying he even identified himself by his name and nickname in a video when he surrendered.
