The famous US film actor and activist George Clooney has announced the expansion of the human rights project he co-founded three years ago to monitor rights abuses in Sudan and South Sudan using satellite photography.

In a press release, the Enough Project, which helps manage the satellite project, said that Clooney made the announcement in a speech on 20 May at a dinner event organized by the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity.

Over the last few years the project has taken satellite images of military outposts, mass graves, razed towns and villages, and other evidence of violence and atrocities.

According to the press release, the project will now aim to expand its focus also to “undertake forensic investigations to reveal how those committing mass atrocities are funding their activities and where they are hiding their stolen assets.”

Clooney said, “We want to follow the money and find out how these atrocities are funded, who enables them, and what the smart tools are to counter these activities more effectively.”

“Genocide and other human rights crimes are never just spontaneous events. They require planning, they require financing, and they require international indifference to succeed. Where is the money coming from and where is it being hidden?”

He said that the project would use a comprehensive approach involving satellite imagery, forensic investigations, and on-the-ground research.

The Satellite Sentinel Project uses imagery and analysis provided by a commercial satellite company, DigitalGlobe. Its new geographic focus will be Sudan, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic.

File photo: Activist John Prendergast (left) with actor George Clooney (right) during a 2010 visit to the White House