Pressure is mounting on Kenya to respond to serious allegations of supporting Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) rebels, with 14 human rights and civil society groups urging the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to summon Nairobi for questioning.
Led by the Kenya Human Rights Commission, the International Commission of Jurists, and the Independent Medico-Legal Unit, the coalition is demanding an urgent investigation into claims that Kenya may be undermining peace in the Horn of Africa by allegedly arming RSF rebels, who are accused of atrocities in Sudan’s ongoing civil war.
The groups’ statement follows an investigative media report that revealed military-grade ammunition, marked with Kenyan emblems, was found in a depot allegedly used by the RSF near Khartoum. The RSF has been implicated in widespread human rights violations, including rape, sexual slavery, recruitment of child soldiers, and forced displacement.
Kenya’s Ministry of Defence has rejected the claims, stating it does not recognize the munitions in question. However, rights groups say the ministry’s response is inadequate, failing to clarify whether Kenya has been involved in arms exports or transfers that may have ended up with the RSF.
Civil society leaders are also calling on Kenya’s Parliament to summon the Ministry of Defence to provide a transparent explanation. The matter gained further traction after reports emerged that RSF-affiliated individuals held a meeting at Nairobi’s Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in April, sparking a diplomatic fallout between Kenya and Sudan.
The rights groups argue that Kenya’s perceived support for the RSF undermines its historical role as a regional peace broker. They insist that President William Ruto’s administration must uphold Kenya’s international obligations under the UN Charter, the African Union’s Constitutive Act, and the Rome Statute.
“Kenya should never support any armed group that violates international human rights and humanitarian law,” the statement reads. The groups assert that summoning Kenya at the UN level would help restore accountability and reinforce efforts toward peace and justice in Sudan.
