Overview
- At a special hearing in The Hague, prosecutor Julian Nicholls pressed for the maximum penalty, calling Ali Muhammad Ali Abd‑Al‑Rahman “literally an axe murderer.”
- Judges convicted him in October on 27 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity for 2003–2004 attacks in Darfur, including murders, torture and orchestrated rapes.
- The court detailed his personal role, with Judge Joanna Korner describing detainees being beaten with axes, forced to lie down and then executed on his orders.
- Defense lawyers maintain mistaken identity and have requested a seven‑year sentence with credit for time served, a position that could allow release within months.
- ICC prosecutors indicated they may seek additional arrest warrants related to the current army–RSF conflict, which the WHO says has killed at least 40,000 people and displaced about 12 million.