Australia has imposed targeted Magnitsky-style human rights sanctions and travel bans on the rival military leaders of Sudan, joining the United States and Canada in holding both sides of the country's war to account. Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced the measures on Thursday, 5 November 2026.

Who is targeted

The sanctions cover four individuals: Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman al-Burhan, commander-in-chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces, and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo Mousa, known as Hemedti, commander of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. Also listed are Al-Tijani Al-Tahir Karshoum, the de facto governor of West Darfur, and Hussein Barsham, an RSF field commander. One entity, the Al-Baraa Bin Malik Brigade, an armed group aligned with Sudan's military, faces targeted financial sanctions.

Asset freezes and travel bans

The designated individuals face asset freezes and travel bans, barring them from entering Australia and restricting access to assets under Australian jurisdiction. Wong said both the RSF and the SAF had committed serious human rights violations and abuses, including attacks on civilians, torture, sexual and gender-based violence, and extrajudicial killings, adding that "those responsible for serious human rights violations and abuses must be held to account".

Building on earlier measures

The measures build on sanctions Australia has already imposed on 13 individuals under the United Nations Security Council's Sudan framework. Washington sanctioned Dagalo on 7 January 2025 and al-Burhan nine days later, while Canada imposed restrictions on both commanders in March 2025. Australia has also issued a class-based humanitarian permit to allow aid work that might otherwise be restricted by the sanctions. Since the conflict began on 15 April 2023, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and more than 14 million displaced.