Ukraine and the Gaza Strip dominate the front pages, but war has also been going on in Sudan for more than eight months. Experts warn that the US and the EU are not only abandoning the Sudanese, but are also risking themselves by forgetting this conflict.
In brief
- The war in Sudan, which has been going on for more than eight months, is receiving too little attention from the international community, according to experts and aid workers.
- Large-scale torture, ethnic violence and the destruction of medical facilities are commonplace. Major famine is also expected due to the war.
- The conflict has created a large migration flow. This could further destabilize the region and lead to a new migration crisis in Europe.
Summary made using AI.
“We are short of words to describe the atrocities now taking place in Sudan,” Clementine Nkweta-Salami, the UN emergency response coordinator for the country, said at a news conference last month. “What’s happening there is close to pure evil.”
Civilians in the southwestern Darfur region, about the size of France, are particularly hard hit. The UN receives reports of large-scale torture, sexual violence and ethnic cleansing, among other things.
In areas where fighting is taking place, more than 70 percent of medical facilities are out of service. Hospitals are captured or destroyed by the warring parties. New outbreaks of diseases such as cholera, dengue fever and measles are commonplace.
The situation in Sudan threatens to become much worse, says Anette Hoffmann, conflict researcher at the Clingendael Institute. “Experts predict that we will see a massive famine early next year, with tens of thousands of deaths every day.”
Militia struggles against army for power
The main warring parties in Sudan are the government army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). This powerful militia stems from the Janjaweed militias that previously fought on the side of the government in the Darfur region and were also guilty of genocide at the time. General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, better known as ‘Hemedti’, heads the RSF.
A wave of protests against dictator Omar Al Bashir led to his fall in 2019, after the army and the RSF jointly decided to discharge him. Military rule was established under General Abdel Fattah Al Burhan, with Hemedti as his right-hand man. The ‘Sovereign Council’ had to arrange the transition to a civilian government. It didn’t get that far. A power struggle between the army and the RSF led to war in April.
More than eight months later, the country is divided. The RSF controls the south and west, including much of the capital Khartoum and large parts of Darfur. The army has been pushed back to the north and east of the country. The port city of Port Sudan, on the Red Sea, serves as a kind of alternative capital.
“The battle is a bit at a standstill at the moment,” says Hoffmann. “Both sides are trying to show that they can manage the areas they control.” According to her, the army does this better than the RSF, which is not set up for governance. “They are strong militarily, but politically they have not won.”
Safe for battle, but that’s all
Renata Burger from the aid organization Cordaid has just returned from the north of South Sudan, where she visited a refugee camp in the town of Renk, close to the border with Sudan. According to the UN, more than a thousand people who have fled the war arrive there every day.
The refugees often have nothing more than a suitcase with them. Some had to leave so suddenly that they left family members behind. Citizen: “For example, a man who was at work and could not be reached on time.”
With their arrival in Renk, refugees are safe from the violence of war, but that is all. “Many families have no shelter and are sitting on the ground,” says Burger. “At most, they stuck some branches in the ground with a cloth on them to shelter from the sun.” Children sleep in the sand and therefore get wounds and other skin problems. They are often malnourished.
Aid for the refugees is slowly coming. Trucks pick up refugees at the border, children are vaccinated and receive nutritional aid. Cordaid helps with vaccinations and gives refugees goods, such as tarpaulins to sit on, mosquito nets, soap and buckets. Burger: “Such basic help makes a difference, but much more is needed.”
Not just a conflict in ‘far Africa’
Other wars demand worldwide attention, but Hoffmann is still surprised at the extent to which it is being snowballed in Sudan. “It is the largest migration crisis worldwide and the fastest growing. This is not just a conflict in ‘far Africa’.”
Countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE) provide the RSF with direct support, and the war threatens to further destabilize an already fragile region. “For example, in the Sahel, in countries such as Chad, Niger and Mali, where the RSF recruits fighters. There are also jihadists among them. In addition, many refugees from Sudan end up in those same countries. They are unable to care for them, so that brings the risk of a new migration crisis in Europe.”
A Sudanese woman with her malnourished child in a clinic near the South Sudanese city of Renk. Photo: Arie Kievit
Sanctions and support for local aid workers
What can the international community do better? Hoffmann: “We need a clear Sudan strategy. The EU and the US do not have one. The ultimate goal must be the transition to a civilian government. Sudan’s history shows that with the military in power there will be wars and violence .”
The conflict researcher advocates sanctions against the leaders of the warring parties. The EU has set up a framework for this, but months later it still does not contain any concrete measures. “That would send a clear signal: we see you, we understand what is happening and we know who is behind the violence.” The West can also exert political pressure on other involved countries, such as the UAE.
“When it comes to humanitarian aid, we have to ask ourselves: are we doing enough?” says Hoffmann. It is difficult for international aid workers to enter Sudan, but that does not mean nothing can be done. “Then support local care providers who are already busy with the little they have, for example by setting up clinics in people’s homes. Even if that means that some help ends up in the wrong hands. If we do nothing, the risks are much greater. “
2023-12-19 10:49:11
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