Australia sanctions Sudan's two war leaders, Burhan and Hemedti, over human rights abuses
Australia has imposed Magnitsky-style human rights sanctions and travel bans on four Sudanese figures, including army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, and financial sanctions on the Al-Baraa Bin Malik Brigade, an armed group aligned with the army. Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced the measures on 5 November, saying both sides in Sudan's war have committed serious abuses, including attacks on civilians, torture, sexual violence and extrajudicial killings.
Key points
- Australia sanctioned four Sudanese men and one armed group on 5 November, under its Magnitsky-style human rights framework.
- Both war leaders are named: the army's Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF's Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti).
- Dealing with their assets without authorisation is a criminal offence in Australia, and the four men are barred from entering the country.
- Australia follows the United States and Canada, which sanctioned both commanders in early 2025.
What happened
Sudan's war between the army and the paramilitary RSF began on 15 April 2023 and has become the world's largest displacement crisis. Australia's move puts both commanders under the same kind of personal sanctions the United States applied in January 2025 — Dagalo first, then Burhan days later — and Canada applied in March 2025.
The designations also reach beyond the two leaders: a West Darfur governor aligned with the RSF, an RSF field commander, and a brigade fighting alongside the army are listed, and a humanitarian permit was issued alongside so relief work is not caught by the asset rules.
Claim by claim
Why this label: Foreign Minister Penny Wong's own statement of 5 November, read in full; the designations were added to Australia's consolidated sanctions list the same day.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: Burhan and Dagalo are named in the foreign minister's statement itself; the full list of four men and the brigade is reported in agreement by Dabanga and QNC News from the consolidated list.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: The words are the foreign minister's own, in her statement. They are Australia's stated basis for the designations, carried here as the government's position.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Show all claims (2 more)
Why this label: The effects and the permit are in the foreign minister's statement and in QNC News' report of the listing; the $67 million figure is the government's own.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: The figures are the Australian Government's, stated in the release; they are carried as its figures, not as a count made by Vozia.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
What we know / what we don't know yet
What we know
- The designations, the five names, and what the measures do — from the foreign minister's statement and the consolidated list reporting.
- Australia's stated grounds, in the minister's own words, and its $67 million aid figure.
What we don't know yet
- Whether either commander, or the brigade, holds assets in Australia that the freeze can bite on — no figure has been published.
- Any response from the Sudanese army or the RSF — none was published in the reporting read.
Why it matters
Sanctions on both commanders at once are a statement that neither side's leadership is treated as a legitimate partner while the abuses continue. Their practical reach depends on assets or travel touching Australia, which is not known — but the listing adds Australia to the group of countries closing their systems to the two men running the war.
Background
Show the background timeline (4)
War begins in Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
The United States sanctions Dagalo, then Burhan days later.
Canada imposes restrictions on both commanders.
Australia designates four Sudanese individuals and the Al-Baraa Bin Malik Brigade.
Update history
No silent edits. Every change is written here, with its time.
- Latest
Published. Basis: the Australian foreign minister's own statement of 5 November and the consolidated-list reporting.