George Clooney and John Prendergast Call on U.S. to Freeze, Seize Assets of Sudanese Regime Responsible for Mass Killings of Peaceful Protesters

June 11, 2019 (Washington, D.C.) – George Clooney and John Prendergast are calling on the U.S. Congress and the Trump Administration to act immediately to freeze and seize assets of Sudan’s military leaders responsible for murderous attacks on peaceful protesters.

In an op-ed published today in Politico, “How Congress Can Help Stop the Killing in Sudan,” Clooney and Prendergast urge strong actions by the Trump Administration and Congress, including Global Magnitsky sanctions and actions by the U.S Treasury, aimed at preventing an escalation of mass violence in Sudan.

The call for action comes as the Trump administration’s top Africa official, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Tibor Nagy, is traveling to Khartoum this week.

George Clooney and John Prendergast, Co-Founders of The Sentry, said in the op-ed: “Traveling throughout the Sudanese region of Darfur and neighboring refugee camps during the mid-2000s, we saw firsthand evidence of the monster the Sudanese regime had built to carry out a genocide. The government organized, armed and deployed militias, known then as the “Janjaweed,” alongside the regular army as the primary instruments of its killing machine. Ethnic cleansing and mass rape were the Janjaweed’s weapons of choice.  Now known by the deceptively anodyne term “Rapid Support Forces,” the Janjaweed militias over the last few days have killed more than 100 unarmed protesters, dumping many bodies in the Nile River, as well as raping, whipping and robbing Sudanese civilians throughout Khartoum. Hundreds more are missing and feared dead. Janjaweed have raided several hospitals and assaulted medical staff.” 

George Clooney and John Prendergast are Co-Founders of The Sentry, an investigative team that follows the dirty money connected to African war criminals and transnational war profiteers and seeks to shut those benefiting from violence out of the international financial system.

More than 100 unarmed protesters have been killed in Khartoum by armed militias, under orders from the Transitional Military Council, which recently took power in a coup. Hundreds more are missing and feared dead. The armed force responsible, known as the “Rapid Support Forces,” is a notorious militia responsible for brutal attacks on ethnic and religious minorities, composed of former leaders and members of the genocidal militia the Janjaweed.

Clooney and Prendergast add: “Sudan is a country that has unified Republicans and Democrats in Congress and successive administrations in Washington in defense of human rights and peace. Much more can be done now by the current Congress and the Trump administration—as well as allies in Europe and Africa—to create consequences for the leaders of the regime and the Janjaweed destroying and looting the country.”

Read the full article in Politico.

Selected article highlights:

• “This regime got away scot-free in committing genocide in Darfur and devastating the people of the now-independent South Sudan for decades. Al-Bashir might be out of power, but the same regime still rules, and the same Janjaweed militias are still committing atrocities.”
• “On June 3, Sudanese security forces spearheaded by the Janjaweed attacked a major protester encampment. Now known by the deceptively anodyne term “Rapid Support Forces,” the Janjaweed militias over the last few days have killed more than 100 unarmed protesters, dumping many bodies in the Nile River, as well as raping, whipping and robbing Sudanese civilians throughout Khartoum. Hundreds more are missing and feared dead. Janjaweed have raided several hospitals and assaulted medical staff. Internet and phone networks are blocked to limit communication. The regime’s military leaders cancelled the agreements it had reached with the protesters and instead called for quick elections that they will surely rig in their favor.”
• “The Trump administration could build major leverage if it deployed available but unused policy tools. In addition to the Global Magnitsky network sanctions, the Treasury Department could issue an anti-money laundering advisory to thousands of banks around the world to be on the lookout for illicit financial flows that have come out of Sudan during the last year as the economy has imploded and the political crisis has escalated.”
• “Now, the leadership of both the House and Senate foreign affairs committees can formally request the Trump administration to sanction a list of Sudanese regime officials and their commercial accomplices who are most responsible for ongoing violence and state looting, starting with Janjaweed leader Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, the vice chair of the current military regime.”

For media inquiries or interview requests, please contact: Greg Hittelman, Director of Communications, +1 310 717 0606, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

ABOUT THE SENTRY

The Sentry is an investigative and policy team that follows the dirty money connected to African war criminals and transnational war profiteers and seeks to shut those benefiting from violence out of the international financial system. By disrupting the cost-benefit calculations of those who hijack governments for self-enrichment in East and Central Africa, the deadliest war zone globally since World War II, we seek to counter the main drivers of conflict and create new leverage for peace, human rights, and good governance. Co-founded by George Clooney and John Prendergast, The Sentry is composed of financial investigators, international human rights lawyers, and regional experts, as well as former law enforcement agents, intelligence officers, policymakers, investigative journalists, and banking professionals.  Learn more at www.TheSentry.org