With Sudan experiencing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises— as the country has been ravaged by a civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2023— peace actors are urging the international community to stand in solidarity with the African nation and its civilians.
“This war has been waged not only by the two armed forces, but more importantly, what we have been seeing is that it’s against… the civilians of Sudan,” said Mona Rishmawi, an international human rights lawyer and member of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) for the Sudan.
The FFM released its most recent report, “Paths to Justice: accountability for atrocities in the Sudan,” to recount violations from both militant forces and their allies, while also exploring ways to hold them accountable and establish peace in the Northeastern African country.
“Torture, murder, summary execution [and] sexual violence are only a few of the main violations that are taking place,” Rishmawi continued.
Although death toll estimates vary, at least tens of thousands of Sudanese civilians have been killed throughout the last two and a half years of violence. Further, 30 million people in the country require humanitarian assistance, approximately 14 million have been forcefully displaced, 24.6 million are experiencing food insecurity and 2 million are facing famine or risk thereof.
The situation recently worsened on Oct. 26 as the RSF, which already controls most of Western Sudan, seized full control of El Fasher, located in the western region of Darfur. Immediately after, the RSF perpetrated mass murders against civilians across the city, killing an estimated 2,500 and causing approximately 5,000 to flee.
“The reports emerging from El Fasher are horrifying,” wrote Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, in a statement. “The RSF must immediately end attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure and allow humanitarian aid into the city.”
Bearing Witness to Sudan’s Suffering and Strength
Recently, senior leaders from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP) traveled to Sudan to observe the conflict-caused devastation, assess the situation and bring visibility to the country’s protection crisis.
During travels to places like Khartoum and Port Sudan, leaders met many affected by the war and were told harrowing accounts of the atrocities experienced— from sexual violence to mass starvation to widespread disease.
“This week will stay with me— the horrific stories of rights violations, the fear, the utter destruction of infrastructure and services, but also the resilience of the people,” said UNHCR Deputy High Commissioner Kelly Clements during a press briefing on the leaders’ visit.
Clements recalled meeting a woman named Fatima in Port Sudan who left her husband and son, both of whom were killed, and fled from El Fasher with all 18 members of her extended family. The group walked for days without any food before reaching safety, an experience of many who have been displaced.
Ted Chaiban, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director for Humanitarian Action and Supply Operations, spoke to women and children in Jebel Marra who had fled El Fasher and were met with an onslaught of armed checkpoints, where they were stripped of their belongings and money and were harassed and attacked.
Like Clements, the strength of the Sudanese people moved Chaiban, especially when so many are cut off from food, water, health care or any kind of humanitarian aid.
Their unapologetic resilience remains a beam of hope.
“Communities [were] repairing schools so their children could resume their education,” Chaiban recounted. “In a child-friendly space, children laughed and played. They drew homes they have lost and dreams for the future.”
A Path Toward Justice and Reform
Efforts from initiatives like the FFM are also a source of hope for Sudan’s future, with a team ready to hold violators of international humanitarian law (IHL) accountable for their actions and to provide effective support for victims.
The most recent report outlined that both the SAF and RSF have committed a slew of human rights and IHL violations. Per the report, the RSF conducted large-scale killings, sexual and gender-based violence, looting, held people hostage, used starvation as a war tactic and committed many other international crimes.
“Unfortunately, these are not incidental acts of war. They form a pattern,” Rishmawi said. “They form a deliberate strategy to terrorize and starve civilians, particularly from certain ethnic groups– non-Arab ethnic groups.”
An example of the targeted attacks against non-Arab ethnic groups in Sudan is the constant mass killings by the RSF of the Masalit ethnic group, which is a people who inhabit Western Sudan, where most of the massacres take place. Such violence has been described as genocidal by members of the international community. Further, this is a repetition of the Darfur genocide from 2003 to 2005, which targeted the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa ethnic groups.
The SAF’s IHL and human rights violations include directing attacks on civilians, the perpetration of thoughtless airstrikes affecting civilian populations and infrastructure and the failure to protect hospitals, medical staff and humanitarian actors. Per the report, these acts amount to war crimes, such as: violence to life and person; disregard for human dignity; executing people without judicial guarantees; and attacks on specially protected objects.
“We concluded that Sudan is currently unwilling and unable to conduct a genuine investigation or prosecution for international crimes,” said Joy Ngozi Ezeilo, who is also a member of the FFM. “Our report, therefore, sets out a path to justice through inclusive Sudanese dialogue relying on four interconnected pillars: truth, justice, reparations, and institutional reforms.”
To successfully create a foundation for peace and stability in Sudan, the FFM believes that upholding each pillar with victim-centered accountability measures is crucial. Victims should be met with transparency regarding the violations committed against them and the roles authorities play.
Per the report, the process of holding offenders accountable and achieving justice will require an all-inclusive Sudanese dialogue with a gender-sensitive approach, since women and children constantly face heightened risks. The FFM also believes that the international community should take action to create an independent judicial mechanism to ensure that all committed atrocities are addressed.
The Mission also calls for the formation of an office for victim support and reparations, so those affected can receive the necessary aid and resources. To ensure institutional reform, the report recommends the establishment of a functioning democratic system.
“The people of Sudan are demanding not sympathy, but solidarity, a commitment that their suffering will not be ignored and that those responsible for their pain will one day face justice,” Ezeilo said. “It is within our collective power to make that promise real.”
