The European Union has banned the purchase, import and transfer of gold from Sudan in a move aimed at choking off revenue that has fuelled the country's civil war since it erupted in April 2023. EU foreign ministers also prohibited exports of mercury and cyanide to Sudan, chemicals essential to gold mining operations.
The conflict between Sudan's regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has displaced more than 14 million people and left millions facing severe food insecurity. Control of the country's lucrative gold sector is split, with the RSF holding most goldfields in Darfur and Kordofan while the army oversees production in northern and eastern regions.
Sudan, one of Africa's largest gold producers, sees more than half its output smuggled abroad each year according to UN experts. Trafficked gold typically transits through Egypt, Chad and Libya before reaching Dubai.