Sudanese fighters accused of massacres use Canadian-made rifles

Weapons bearing the logo of a Canadian arms shaper person been identified successful the hands of a paramilitary radical successful Sudan liable for massacres of civilians, investigation by CBC’s ocular investigations portion has found. 

The civilian warfare that erupted connected April 15, 2023, has wreaked havoc connected civilian infrastructure, decimated health-care facilities successful Sudan and resulted successful the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. An estimated 150,000 radical person died successful the struggle and much than 12 cardinal civilians are internally displaced. 

The metropolis of El Fasher — considered the past stronghold of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) successful Darfur — has go the epicentre of Sudan’s spiralling war. For much than 500 days, the metropolis had been nether siege, encircled wholly by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which experts person accused of taste cleansing. 

On Oct. 26, the metropolis yet fell to the RSF. Reports of civilian massacres followed. 

Multiple photos posted online and verified by CBC amusement rifles with the logo of Sterling Cross Defense Systems, an Abbotsford, B.C.-based institution that produces firearms and ammunition, successful the hands of RSF fighters.

Images shared connected societal media by RSF fighters — noted implicit the years by probe groups specified arsenic War Noir and Streaking Delilah, and verified by CBC — picture Sterling Cross’s XLCR sniper rifles successful the hands of fighters passim Sudan since astatine slightest 2023. 

The CBC ocular investigations squad verified the images by either geolocating them successful Sudan oregon matching emblems and camo designs to those utilized successful Sudan. CBC besides confirmed the plan of the Sterling Cross XLCR, which features a distinctive logo connected the rifle's little receiver, conscionable supra the mag well.

On Oct. 5, 2024, arsenic the conflict for Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, was unfolding, the RSF posted a video connected its authoritative Telegram transmission showcasing its fighters on the city’s confederate beforehand line.

Slung implicit the enarthrosis of 1 RSF combatant successful the video is simply a modern-looking, bolt-action precision rifle, with a skeletonized folding stock, a handguard and a high-power scope. 

Then, for conscionable a fewer frames arsenic the combatant turns his backmost to the camera, a tiny emblem becomes disposable connected the rifle’s chassis: the Sterling Cross logo. 

A inactive from a video published by the RSF shows a combatant holding a firearm with the logo of Sterling Cross Defense Systems. (RSFSudan/Telegram, Sterlingcrossdefense/Facebook)

This is not a one-off quality of the limb successful Sudan. With the assistance of planetary open-source quality researchers, CBC’s ocular investigations squad has verified astatine slightest 9 photos oregon videos with rifles bearing the Sterling Cross logo.

• If you person a extremity for the CBC News ocular investigations team, email: [email protected].

Another undated representation posted connected Instagram shows an RSF fighter, clad successful godforsaken camouflage, lasting connected a road. On his shoulder, helium holds the aforesaid Sterling Cross rifle, with the institution logo visible. 

An representation shared connected societal media shows a Sudanese combatant wearing an RSF azygous holding a rifle. An representation of Sterling Cross's XLCR firearm is shown connected the close for comparison. (Streakingdelilah/Instagram, Sterlingcrossdefense/Instagram)

Sterling Cross

When reached for comment, Sterling Cross would not reply circumstantial questions astir CBC’s findings successful Sudan, its existent planetary arms merchantability concern — which would autumn nether the purview of Global Affairs Canada — and whether it has sold weapons to countries that are alleged to proviso factions successful Sudan, including the United Arab Emirates. 

“I tin guarantee you that Sterling Cross' policies align with that of Global Affairs Canada,” Aimee Byrne, Sterling Cross’s manager of operations, said successful a statement, adding the institution is taxable to the Export and Import Permits Act.

In a effect to questions from CBC News, Global Affairs Canada said: "All licence applications for controlled items are reviewed connected a case-by-case ground nether Canada's robust hazard appraisal framework. Canada has made nary exceptions to this ineligible requirement.

"If these laws are violated, we volition guarantee those liable look ineligible consequences that could see fines, seizure of goods and transgression prosecution."

Sterling Cross’s website is bare bones, made up of thing much than 2 buttons to interaction the company’s defence and logistics arms.

The tiny steadfast was established successful 2008, according to incorporation documents seen by CBC, and is based retired of a plaza successful Abbotsford that besides hosts welding and concern proviso businesses.

CEO Tim McFarlane told B.C. outlet The Province successful 2013 that the institution operated arsenic a broker for planetary militaries astatine the beginning. “We would root merchandise worldwide for antithetic subject agencies, past we would broker the deal, not dissimilar a existent property broker," helium said.

A 2019 photograph shared by Sterling Cross connected societal media displays dozens of rifles and is captioned, "XLCR last inspection earlier transportation !!" (Sterlingcrossdefense/Instagram)

According to the article, Sterling Cross opened its commercialized limb successful 2011, producing rifles and ammunition and advertizing to Canadian hunters. But it maintained concern connections abroad, including successful the Middle East.

“We’re a one-kit planetary solution,” MacFarlane said. “We brand, we broker, we source, we manufacture.”

Sterling Cross has had contracts with the Canadian authorities successful the past. One contract, ending successful 2017, saw the institution present ammunition to the Department of National Defence for $189,422. Another contract, besides from 2017, states that the logistics broadside of the steadfast delivered $24,818 worthy of goods nether the Canadian commodity codification for calculating machines.

A declaration shows that the Department of National Defence awarded Sterling Cross $189,422 to present ammunition betwixt 2014 and 2017. (Department of National Defence)

Sterling Cross has produced the XLCR firearm since astatine slightest 2019. In an Instagram post, the institution published an representation showing astatine slightest 77 rifles captioned “XLCR last inspection earlier transportation !!”

All these rifles diagnostic the aforesaid institution logo, located successful the aforesaid spot arsenic connected rifles seen successful Sudan.

According to a 2020 Facebook post, the institution was besides moving tests with the rifle, stating, “New merchandise investigating coming on nicely #xlcr #excelsior #ballistics #rangetesting.” That station featured different photograph of a firearm with the institution logo successful the aforesaid spot arsenic connected the rifles spotted successful Sudan.

International brokers

Kholood Khair, manager of the Khartoum-based think-tank Confluence Advisory, said the proliferation of overseas weapons successful Sudan’s struggle has contributed to prolonging the war. 

In summation to the quality of Turkish and Iranian drones, “we person seen reports of American, British and Canadian spare parts oregon afloat weapons making their mode into RSF hands done the U.A.E.,” she said.

Canada has maintained an arms embargo connected Sudan since 2004 arsenic good arsenic worldly and fiscal sanctions against entities and individuals implicated successful the struggle since 2024. 

It’s unclear however the Sterling Cross-branded weapons made their mode into Sudan. But experts told CBC countries specified arsenic the United Arab Emirates person rerouted Canadian instrumentality successful the past.

“Canada exports millions of dollars’ worthy of weapons and systems to the U.A.E., which supplies the RSF,” said Emadeddin Badi, a Toronto-based elder chap astatine the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime. “The U.A.E. does not person a home defence manufacture of its ain robust capable to proviso aggregate paramilitary groups crossed the region.”

Armoured vehicles produced by Canadian steadfast Streit Group and outfitted with instrumentality guns person been pictured carrying RSF fighters successful Sudan for much than a decade. In 2016, a UN study accused Streit Group and the U.A.E. of brokering sales. 

However, Streit opened a mill successful the U.A.E. successful 2012, and determination were nary rules regulating the travel of weapons if they were not produced successful Canada. In 2019, Canada joined the planetary Arms Trade Treaty and implemented authorities that requires Canadian citizens to get a licence to export arms from 1 state to different and instrumentality enactment against planetary brokers. 

According to Badi, nether the caller legislation, Canadian firms recovered to beryllium successful usurpation could look prosecution successful Canada. 

WATCH | The value of the autumn of El Fasher successful Sudan:

The United Arab Emirates has been accused of providing arms to the Rapid Support Forces by U.S. quality agencies and quality rights groups, though it has repeatedly denied sending weapons. The SAF is reportedly backed astir prominently by Egypt, Turkey and Iran. Chinese arms person besides been spotted connected some sides of the battlefield.

On Sunday, the U.A.E.’s elder diplomatic advisor Anwar Gargash signalled the state whitethorn beryllium distancing itself from the conflict. 

“We each made a mistake erstwhile the 2 generals who are warring the civilian warfare contiguous overthrew the civilian government,” said Gargash. “That was, looking back, a captious mistake. We should person enactment our ft down collectively. We did not telephone it a coup.”

‘Canada needs to bash better’

According to Badi, Canada's public-facing strategy for tracing arms exports has a fig of structural gaps. 

He said it has strict licensing rules connected paper, but that it’s “weak” connected monitoring weapons erstwhile they’ve near the country. “And erstwhile it relies connected brokers to behaviour the transfers, past the end-use concatenation becomes opaque,” helium said.

CBC consulted ImportGenius, a planetary commercialized information platform, to find records of exports betwixt Canada, the U.A.E. and Sudan. No elaborate records could beryllium uncovered.

“Canada doesn't publically merchandise granular commercialized data, dissimilar the United States and different countries,” said Mike Kanko, CEO of ImportGenius. “Public consciousness of firm enactment is indispensable successful an informed society. Visibility for each stakeholders keeps companies accountable, and consumers safe.”

Granular commercialized information would place companies progressive successful shipping activity, and is chiseled from statistical commercialized information that aggregates shipments by merchandise category, helium said. 

“Canadians ... request to person a overmuch amended consciousness of their tracking and monitoring mechanics to cognize wherever weapons are ending up,” said Khair. “That is simply a immense portion of accountability.”

Nicholas Coughlin, Canada’s erstwhile envoy successful South Sudan, told CBC that mechanisms successful Canadian instrumentality tin code the issue. 

“For example, nether the Export and Imports Permit Act, Canada mightiness spot the U.A.E. connected the Country Control List, oregon it could enforce re-export conditions connected it done the Broker Control List,” helium said. 

Badi said “Canada needs to bash better.”

“This isn’t to accidental determination aren’t ineligible mechanisms, but yet with the mode the U.A.E. funnels its enactment — mostly done ammunition companies registered successful overseas jurisdictions — it’s going to beryllium a crippled of Whac-a-Mole.”