Amnesty International says Sudanese security forces are continuing to commit "war crimes and other serious human rights violations" in the Darfur region.

The warning comes as a political crisis is rocking Sudan, where the military took over after ousting autocrat Omar al-Bashir in April, following months of street protests against his rule.

Amnesty says the abuses in Darfur at the hands of Sudanese paramilitary units, the Rapid Support Forces, include destruction of villages, as well as "unlawful killings and sexual violence."

It warns that if the U.N.-African Union force is dismantled and the peacekeepers pull out of Darfur, this "would recklessly and needlessly place tens of thousands of lives at risk."

The U.N. is to vote at the end of the month about the future of the already reduced force.