WASHINGTON (CN) — As international attention remains focused on the Middle East and Eastern Europe, a protracted conflict in Africa has hit a somber anniversary.
Monday marks one year of bloody civil war between rival military factions in Sudan. It’s a conflict that’s failed to stay in the spotlight in the United States despite the dire humanitarian situation and the specter of a renewed genocide in Darfur.
It’s been hard for international observers to determine the number of casualties in the war — though estimates are grim.
While the U.N. estimates at least 12,000 people have died, that number is likely far too low. In just one city in Darfur, for example, media reports say between 10,000 and 15,000 people have been killed.
Despite the constant bloodshed, the conflict hasn’t captured the attention of the American public. President Joe Biden has been criticized for sidelining the crisis to put more energy toward Russia’s war in Ukraine and Israel’s operations in Gaza. Activists are planning a rally outside the White House on Monday afternoon to call for more attention for the Sudan conflict.
“We don’t see as much coverage about atrocities in Sudan. We don’t see as much coverage about the plight of the Sudanese people,” State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said. “We would welcome seeing coverage of this very difficult conflict that we’re trying to solve in Sudan.”
Understanding Sudan’s political and humanitarian crisis requires a trip back to 1989, when Omar al-Bashir took over the country in a military coup. His 30-year reign reached a nadir with the infamous Darfur genocide of the mid-2000s.
The Sudanese people eventually toppled al-Bashir in a popular uprising in 2019. That uprising gained the support of the military and the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary, which evolved out of the janjaweed Arab militias that al-Bashir used to commit atrocities in Darfur.
The SAF and RSF shared power with civilian leaders in a transitional government meant to lead Sudan to democracy. That transition was delayed when the SAF and RSF ousted civilian leaders in 2021.
Military leaders last year were expected to hand over power to civilian leadership as part of an internationally brokered deal. But that plan soon fell apart, as a power struggle erupted between Army General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti.
As the violence escalated, the U.S. and other Western countries quickly evacuated their embassies and personnel.
Since then, the war has decimated the capital Khartoum and spread throughout the country. More than 8 million people have been forced to flee their home, while around 25 million people — more than half the country’s population — need humanitarian assistance.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said Monday marks a grim milestone for a conflict marked by gang rape, mass murder and slavery.
“As communities barrel toward famine, as cholera and measles spread, as violence continues to claim countless lives, the world has largely remained silent,” she said. “That must change, and it has to change now. The international community must give more, it must do more, and it has to care more."
Mohamed Chande Othman, chair of the U.N. Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan, said the warring factions have shown little regard for protecting civilians. The U.N. is now investigating war crimes.
“It’s beyond time for this devastating war to stop,” Othman said. “The warring parties must bring an immediate end to all violence, including sexual and gender-based violence, and hold the perpetrators of serious human rights violations accountable for their acts.”
Beyond the ethnic violence, aid agencies have warned of an impending famine as harvest yields have dropped, grain prices have increased and the flow of humanitarian assistance has been stymied by the army.
“If rural populations cannot safely remain on their land to plant their crops or tend to their livestock, we will see a catastrophe,” said Joy Ezeilo, a member of the U.N. fact-finding mission.
The U.S. and Saudi Arabia have tried to mediate talks between the warring factions, but negotiations have consistently broken down. Tom Perriello, who was appointed in February as a special envoy to Sudan, said that Saudi Arabia is willing to host further talks and that the U.S. hopes to announce a date for those soon.
“While many, many signs point to the war getting even worse — in some ways it’s gotten so bad and it’s starting to have such regional implications — it’s also increased, I think, some of the diplomatic appetite to try to find an end to this war,” he said. “And we’re going to try to use every lever we have to build that into enough political momentum and political will to end this war.”
Outside countries have been accused of furthering violence by picking sides and supplying weapons to the army or the RSF. Perriello said that’s adding fuel to the fire, bringing in more formerly neutral tribes and spreading the war’s footprint. The U.S. has urged countries to halt support for the warring parties.
“Right now is a time that every arms shipment, every bit fueling this conflict, is something that pushes us closer to not only famine, but to a failed state,” Perriello said. “And the flip side is this is a situation in which everyone in the region can benefit from a peaceful and stable Sudan.”
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