Khartoum: Amnesty International has confirmed that advanced Chinese weapons provided by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia are being used in violation of the arms embargo in Sudan.
According to Sudan News Agency, Amnesty International’s recent report highlights that civilians are being killed and injured as a result of global inaction and the transfer of weapons from the UAE to the militia. The report identifies the use of guided bombs and Norinco howitzers in attacks, with advanced Chinese weapons being seized in Sudan’s capital, Khartoum. These weapons, re-exported by the UAE to the militia, have also been used in Darfur, breaching the UN arms embargo.
Amnesty International, through analysis of photos and videos from the aftermath of RSF attacks, documented the use of GB50A guided bombs and AH-4 155mm howitzers. This is the first documented use of GB50A bombs in any conflict worldwide. Manufactured by Norinco, a Chinese state-owned defense entity, these weapons were likely re-exported to Sudan by the UAE for the RSF’s use.
Brian Castner, Head of Crisis Research at Amnesty International, stated that the presence of modern Chinese-made bombs in North Darfur constitutes a clear violation of the UAE’s arms embargo. He noted the documentation of AH-4s in Khartoum as further evidence of widespread UAE support for the RSF, violating international law.
Castner criticized the Security Council for not enforcing the arms embargo on Darfur, emphasizing the consequence of global inaction on civilian casualties. He urged the UAE to immediately cease arms transfers to the RSF and advocated for a halt in arms exports to the UAE by all states until compliance is ensured.
He further called on China, as a party to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), to take measures to prevent weapon diversion to Sudan. He warned that China’s continued supply of arms to the UAE risks indirectly supporting the Sudan conflict. Castner also highlighted the UAE’s consistent undermining of ATT principles, demanding that all arms transfers to the UAE halt until it ensures no re-exportation to embargoed destinations and investigates previous embargo violations fully.
Amnesty International’s report included evidence of UAE-supplied weapons used by the RSF, citing a drone attack in North Darfur that killed 13 people, according to local media and a Sudanese human rights organization. Digital evidence identified the bomb used as a GB50A guided aerial bomb from Norinco, manufactured in 2024, and used by drones supplied by the UAE.
Images of bomb fragments, distinctive in design, further confirmed the weapon’s identity. In another incident, videos showed the Sudanese Armed Forces seizing weapons left by the RSF in Khartoum in March 2025, including a Norinco AH-4 howitzer, imported by the UAE in 2019.
This ongoing support for the RSF by the UAE aligns with findings from the UN Panel of Experts on Sudan and other reports. Amnesty International previously reported the UAE’s embargo violations, including the supply of Wing Loong drones to Libya.
The organization urged the Norinco Group to respect human rights in its global operations, requiring comprehensive human rights risk assessments across its supply chain. Amnesty International called for Norinco to review all military exports to the UAE and halt arms exports if weapons continue to be diverted to Sudan.