A United States-based human rights organisation has raised alarm over reports that Kenyan authorities issued passports to Sudanese individuals linked to war crimes and human rights abuses in Sudan’s ongoing conflict.
The New York-based Human Rights Foundation criticised the move, saying it risks allowing individuals accused of financing violence in Sudan to move freely using Kenyan travel documents.
The organisation shared its concerns through a statement on its official account on X.
The statement comes as Kenyan authorities remain silent about the growing controversy surrounding the alleged issuance of passports to individuals associated with Sudan’s paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces.
According to the organisation, Kenya is believed to have issued passports to more than 25 Sudanese nationals. Among them is Algoney Hamdan Daglo Musa, the younger brother of Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo.
Both men have been sanctioned by the United States over allegations that they helped finance and support the activities of the Rapid Support Forces.
The sanctions accuse them of helping procure weapons and funding operations linked to ethnically targeted killings and sexual violence during Sudan’s conflict.
The Human Rights Foundation also suggested that the passport issue could be linked to what it described as a controversial relationship between Kenyan leadership and the RSF.
The group warned that such actions could allow sanctioned individuals to bypass international restrictions.
The controversy intensified after a leaked list from the Kenya Immigration Department revealed that passports had been issued or were in the process of being issued to Sudanese and Zimbabwean nationals whose backgrounds had raised questions.
According to the leaked records, the documents were processed between August 2024 and February this year.
The list included people believed to have connections with the Rapid Support Forces as well as a Zimbabwean national accused of corruption in his home country.
Human rights activist Boniface Mwangi strongly criticised the development, claiming that Kenyan passports were being issued cheaply to questionable individuals.
The revelations have sparked public outrage, with many Kenyans questioning how the documents were approved and warning that the scandal could damage the credibility of the Kenyan passport.
Despite the growing criticism, Evelyn Cheluget and Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen have not yet issued a detailed response to the allegations.
The involvement of the Human Rights Foundation is expected to increase international attention on the issue as pressure mounts on the Kenyan government to explain how the passports were issued.
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