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Two years ago, a power struggle broke out between two factions of Sudan‘S militaryToday, the conflict is spiraling out of control, killing thousands united nations The report calls it a “slaughterhouse.”
Last week, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group battling Sudan’s military, captured the town of Al Fashar, the last area in the army-held West Darfur region.
Shortly thereafter, reports of ethnically motivated massacres emerged. The World Health Organization said 460 people died in just one incident in a city hospital. Witnesses described widespread executions and sexual violence targeting certain ethnic groups.
A UN fact-finding mission last year found that both sides in the conflict had committed war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Rights groups and analysts are now warning of the potential danger genocide taking place. Some say the killings are reminiscent of the beginning of the Rwandan genocide in 1994, in which an astonishing 800,000 people were killed.
The atrocities are also following the same disturbing pattern as in Darfur 20 years ago, in which an estimated 300,000 people were killed.
At the time, celebrity activists like George Clooney helped put Darfur on the map. It became a major foreign policy issue in the United States, Europe, Africa, and elsewhere. The genocide in Rwanda was still relatively fresh in people’s minds. The slogan of “Never Again” was still taken seriously to some extent.
Global attention ultimately led to the International Criminal Court indicting Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir for directing a campaign of mass killings in Darfur, the first head of state to be convicted.
Sudan is now home to the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. Hundreds of thousands of people have died, 12 million have been displaced and 21 million face “high levels of acute food insecurity” by 2023, according to the United Nations.
Yet, compared to the early 2000s, the international community has remained largely silent.
Why global attention matters
It would be tempting to say that the war and suffering in Gaza and Ukraine has overshadowed Sudan in the minds of global leaders and concerned citizens. But this does not mean that the world cannot do anything.
Global awareness of Darfur 20 years ago didn’t solve anything on its own, but it was a first step. This ultimately led to the deployment of a peacekeeping mission by the United Nations and the African Union.
The mission was very small and limited, but it showed that international peacekeepers can still have a positive impact in the 21st century. They can monitor ceasefires, implement disarmament programmes, protect civilians and prevent further escalation of violence.
There also needs to be greater attention – and pressure – put on external actors supporting both sides in the current conflict. These countries are pursuing their strategic interests in Sudan and see the power struggle as an opportunity to increase their influence in the region and establish control over Sudan’s natural resources.
The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) are supported by Egypt, Türkiye, Iran and Russia. Meanwhile, the UAE has been accused of funding and providing arms to the Rapid Support Forces, in clear violation of the arms embargo.
Although these countries deny supplying arms to both sides, rights groups say that a flood of arms has nevertheless entered the country. In particular the UAE is accused of secretly supplying drones, howitzers, heavy machine guns and mortars to RSF fighters in Darfur.
The UAE has recently begun to distance itself from the RSF following the atrocities in El Fasher.
What is needed to bring peace
A ceasefire must be agreed immediately, so that humanitarian corridors can be opened to allow aid organizations to do their work.
All external military support to the warring parties must immediately end. The existing arms embargo is very limited and poorly enforced – it needs to be strengthened.
More sanctions should be imposed, particularly on criminals allegedly responsible for international crimes. In January, the Biden administration imposed sanctions on RSF commanders and several UAE-based companies supporting them – these are now expected to be expanded.
This would make it more difficult for both sides to continue using Sudan’s lucrative gold trade to maintain the war.
About the author
Philip Kastner is Senior Lecturer in International Law at the University of Western Australia. This article is republished from Conversation Under Creative Commons license. read the original article,
To maintain long-term peace, both sides must also agree on a mechanism to disarm RSF combatants or integrate them into regular forces.
Establishing some kind of justice and reconciliation process could also help prevent further violence. This clearly indicates that committing crimes will not be rewarded. It can also help communities heal and give peace a better chance.
Nothing of the sort has really happened in Darfur over the past few decades. Instead, political actors continued to exploit and escalate ethnic tensions. The RSF, in particular, has recruited fighters from the notorious Janjaweed militia responsible for Darfur atrocities in the early 2000s.
A further complication is the increasing fragmentation of the situation, as the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF are not fully unified forces. There is no centralized control over the various alliances of their fighters.
This means that getting the leaders to agree on a ceasefire is important, but it may not be enough.
As a result, peace initiatives must include local agreements with individual rebel leaders and small groups of combatants, which can significantly increase the protection of populations in particular areas.
To be clear, lasting peace does not come from some miraculous peacemaker. In fact, previous attempts at peace talks aimed at ending the conflict this year have yielded nothing concrete.
But this is where other actors can also play an important role. For example, the UAE may now feel pressure to exert a more positive influence on the RSF and urge it to come to the negotiating table. The same applies to the Egyptian and Sudanese armed forces.
And then a more comprehensive plan needs to be worked out, ideally through an international organization such as the United Nations or the African Union, with the goal of empowering the people of Sudan to make their own political decisions.
Sudan is a stark reminder that building lasting peace requires major efforts. The country’s disastrous situation demands the world to continue its efforts.