Adel Abdel Rahim / Anadolu

The Sudanese government rejected the new US sanctions imposed on it over accusations of using chemical weapons, considering them based on 'false allegations' and 'purely political' motives, while calling on Washington to provide the evidence it claims to have.

The United States had announced that the additional sanctions imposed on Sudan over accusations of using chemical weapons would come into effect on Monday, July 20, 2026.

Washington said the Sudanese government did not meet the conditions stipulated in the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control Act during the three-month deadline.

The sanctions include a ban on providing any loans or financial or technical assistance to Sudan by international financial institutions, with the exception of humanitarian and food aid, along with imposing broad restrictions on the export of most US goods and technologies to Sudan, and subjecting products with security or military use to strict review under a 'presumption of denial' policy.

These sanctions are scheduled to last for at least one year, unless the US administration determines that Sudan has met the necessary legal conditions for their lifting.

The Sudanese Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Sunday evening that Sudan 'categorically rejects the unilateral and illegal sanctions that the United States announced imposing on Sudan, based on false allegations of the Sudanese Armed Forces using chemical weapons.'

It added that the government reaffirms its commitment to relevant international agreements and continues its cooperation with competent international organizations, foremost among them the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

It clarified that Khartoum had refuted these accusations since they were raised in the media, describing them as lacking any basis and attributed to unknown sources.

It affirmed its continued full commitment to the provisions of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Production, Stockpiling and Destruction of Chemical Weapons, and its full compliance with the obligations arising from the convention, including submitting relevant periodic notifications, and not producing, possessing or using chemical weapons, especially as it holds membership in the Executive Council of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

The Foreign Ministry added that the Sudanese government also committed to cooperation and positive engagement with the United States to investigate any doubts or allegations in this regard, by following the necessary technical and procedural steps to verify the accusations.

It added: 'However, the United States not only failed to provide any credible evidence, but also ignored all the technical mechanisms and procedures stipulated in the Chemical Weapons Convention, to issue a decision to impose sanctions on Sudan.'

It considered that this 'indicates that the motives for these sanctions are purely political and do not reflect genuine concerns about preventing the use of chemical weapons.'

It continued: 'All of this indicates that the motives for these sanctions are purely political and do not reflect genuine concerns about preventing the use of chemical weapons, recalling precedents of the United States using allegations of prohibited weapons use for its own political purposes.'

It called on Washington to adhere to the applicable legal mechanisms and fulfill its bilateral commitment to Khartoum to provide the evidence it claims to have.

In May 2025, the United States imposed initial sanctions on Sudan over accusations of using chemical weapons in the conflict with the Rapid Support Forces during 2024. These sanctions include restrictions on US exports to Sudan, in addition to limiting access to US government credit lines.

Khartoum rejected those accusations, while the head of the Transitional Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, issued a decision on May 29, 2025, to form a national committee to investigate the American allegations regarding the Sudanese army's use of chemical weapons in the war with the Rapid Support Forces.

Since mid-April 2023, the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces have been fighting a war that has killed more than 20,000 people and caused the displacement and refuge of about 15 million, according to UN and local authorities' data, while a study by US universities estimated the death toll at about 130,000.