ICC Jails 'Colonel of Colonels': Darfur Commander Gets 20 Years for Atrocities

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has sentenced a notorious Sudanese militia leader to 20 years in prison. Ali Muhammad Ali Abdelrahman, known as Ali Kushayb, was a senior commander of the Janjaweed militias. He was widely feared in Darfur, where he was called the "Colonel of Colonels." The court in The Hague convicted him in October on 27 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The charges included murder, torture, rape, persecution, and forcibly displacing civilians. These crimes were committed during the brutal conflict in Darfur between 2003 and 2004. The ICC judges delivered the 20-year sentence today. This ruling is a major result of the court's long investigation into the Darfur conflict.