Khartoum, SUDAN

Sudan has rejected a report from the UN Fact-Finding Mission, which accused warring factions in the country of committing severe human rights violations that could amount to war crimes.

In a statement released late Saturday, the Foreign Ministry said the report "oversteps its mandate."

The conflict in Sudan began when conflicts between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) flared into open warfare. Civilians are facing worsening famine, mass displacement and disease after 17 months of war.

The UN mission on Friday said both sides of the conflict had committed "appalling range of human rights violations,” potentially qualifying as war crimes and crimes against humanity.

It called for an immediate end to attacks on civilians and urged the deployment of an independent and neutral force to protect the population.

The UN also recommended expanding the existing arms embargo in Darfur, as outlined in Security Council Resolution 1556 and subsequent resolutions, to cover all of Sudan. This measure aims to curb the flow of weapons, ammunition, and other support to the warring parties and prevent further escalation of the conflict.

The Sudanese ministry criticized the mission's conduct, accusing it of lacking professionalism and independence by publishing the report before presenting it to the UN Human Rights Council.

It described the fact-finding mission as "political, not legal," and argued that the recommendations went beyond its mandate.

The statement accused the mission of aligning with "well-known international forces" that it claimed had long held hostile stances toward Sudan, without naming specific nations.

The government suggested that the mission's actions were part of a broader effort to influence the positions of UN member states and extend the mission's mandate.

In particular, Khartoum took issue with the recommendation to extend the arms embargo to include the Sudanese army, which it said was fulfilling its constitutional and moral duty to protect the country and its people.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi