Sudan: New U.S. Sanctions Bar Sudanese Airlines and Those 'Fuelling Sudan War'

Lead

The United States has imposed sanctions on eight individuals and entities accused of fueling Sudan's civil war, including an Indian national and his explosives company. The measures, announced by the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), target networks that support both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Coverage Comparison

Reports on the sanctions vary in focus. The Hindu reported that the sanctions target networks supporting both warring parties, naming Alok Choudhari, an Indian national from Raipur, and his company SBL Energy Limited, also known as Amin Explosive Private Limited, for allegedly supplying explosives to Sudan. According to The Hindu, the U.S. Treasury said these networks enabled the SAF and RSF to expand and intensify the civil war.

AllAfrica's coverage highlighted a broader set of U.S. actions. One report described the sanctions as targeting individuals and entities supporting the conflict and accused Sudan's government of using chemical weapons and the RSF of committing genocide. Another AllAfrica report detailed a warning from the U.S. administration to Sudan's Muslim Brotherhood movement, which it says receives training and support from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Additionally, AllAfrica reported that the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved a bill to oppose loans to Sudan. The proposed legislation, called the Prevention of External Aggression and Escalation of Conflict in Sudan Act of 2026, would prohibit foreign aid for non-humanitarian purposes and require periodic reports on Sudan.

Key Claims

• The U.S. imposed sanctions on eight persons and entities for allegedly fueling the civil war in Sudan.
• The sanctions target networks supporting the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces.
• Alok Choudhari, an Indian national, was sanctioned for supplying explosives to Sudan.
• SBL Energy Limited, an Indian company, was sanctioned for supplying explosives to Sudan.
• The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control imposed the sanctions.
• The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved a bill to oppose loans to Sudan.
• The Prevention of External Aggression and Escalation of Conflict in Sudan Act of 2026 prohibits foreign aid for non-humanitarian purposes.
• The U.S. warns Sudan's Muslim Brotherhood movement, which it says receives training and support from Iran.
• The U.S. accuses Sudan's government of using chemical weapons.
• The U.S. accuses Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces of committing genocide.

Perspectives

U.S. Government

The U.S. State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott stated that the sanctioned networks "supply weapons, explosives, and foreign fighters to both the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces," prolonging a conflict that has created "the world's worst humanitarian crisis" and provided space for terrorist groups. Pigott also announced a second round of sanctions under the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act, including opposing loans to Sudan and barring Sudanese state-owned airlines from operating in the U.S. He reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to peace, calling on warring parties to agree to a humanitarian truce.

U.S. Administration Officials

U.S. Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos warned Sudan's Muslim Brotherhood movement, accusing fighters affiliated with it of receiving training and support from the IRGC and committing abuses against civilians. Boulos indicated that additional designations and sanctions were under consideration, and insisted there is no military solution to the conflict, urging negotiations without preconditions.