Every two hours, a child dies in Sudan. Our global silence is deafening
13 views
Skip to first unread message
John Ashworth
Apr 30, 2024, 12:45:31 AMApr 30
to Group
Every two hours, a child dies in Sudan. Our global silence is deafening.
As it stands now, only the vultures – whether birds or war profiteers
– are benefiting from the slow collapse of the country.
Don Cheadle and John Prendergast
USA Today
29 April 2024
As the 21st century’s first genocide unfolded in the middle of the
Sahara Desert 20 years ago, we were part of an unprecedentedly large
coalition of citizens pressing the U.S. government to act. Sudan’s
western region of Darfur was being ripped apart by militias
collectively known as the Janjaweed (“devils on horseback”). Hundreds
of thousands were killed, and millions rendered homeless.
We participated in rallies and met with politicians from all over the
United States, traveled through rebel-held areas of Darfur, brought TV
crews to spend time with refugees in the camps in Chad, co-authored an
otherwise obscure book on Darfur that ended up a New York Times
best-seller, and were part of an anti-genocide people’s movement
called Save Darfur that was aimed at stopping the atrocities and
supporting a peaceful democratic transition in Sudan.
Wouldn’t it be great if we could say this effort had a happy ending?
Tragically, genocide has returned to Darfur, along with mass
atrocities being committed throughout Sudan in an escalating year-old
war. But this time it has been met with a deafening silence. The only
living creatures that are thriving in this environment are the
vultures, feeding on corpses left in the streets to rot.
The worst hunger crisis in the world in decades
Having spent the past two decades being organized and armed by the
Sudanese army, the Janjaweed – since expanded and now known as the
Rapid Support Forces (RSF) – turned on their former army benefactors a
year ago and have taken over large swathes of Sudan in one of the
world’s deadliest civil wars.
With 10.7 million people already displaced, Sudan has the largest
child refugee crisis in the world. The death toll is unknown because
the nation’s medical system is collapsing. In one Darfur displaced
camp, a child is dying every two hours. Immunizations have been
dramatically reduced, setting many areas up for fresh epidemics. The
school system has also cratered, while kidnapping and sexual slavery
are on the rise. The capital city of Khartoum is being destroyed block
by block, and religious persecution is spiking.
Experts say this is becoming the worst hunger crisis in the world in
decades. Seven million people face the prospect of mass starvation by
June. The suffering may be off camera now, but it won’t be in a few
months when babies are starving en masse.
The RSF is militarily backed by the United Arab Emirates and has
profited greatly from selling conflict gold to Dubai, Chad and Russia,
which seeks a base on the Red Sea. The RSF has used genocidal violence
and mass rape against non-Arab ethnic groups in Darfur and mass
atrocities in other regions to gain territory.
The corruption-fueled Sudanese Armed Forces is backed by Egypt and
Iran, with Iranian drones providing recent battlefield momentum. The
SAF is dropping barrel bombs on urban neighborhoods, arresting and
torturing Sudanese pro-democracy activists in ghost houses, and
committing other grave rights violations.
The result is a country hurtling toward state collapse and mass
famine, which will likely drive millions of Sudanese across an already
fragile swath of Africa and northward across the Mediterranean Sea
into Europe.
The Sudanese people are crying out for peace. Will the US listen?
By sending arms to their respective Sudanese allies and allowing
Sudanese gold to be smuggled to their countries, the UAE and Egypt are
undermining their longer-term goals in Sudan. The chance of their
desired end – a satellite Sudanese regime beholden to them – is
diminishing. Sudanese investment opportunities have become largely
illicit.
Hopes for Sudan becoming a breadbasket for the Red Sea region have
been dashed. Islamist and Iranian influences are expanding. And the
UAE and Egypt will be increasingly tied to the horrors unfolding in
Sudan.
Russia is similarly undermining its chances to establish a base on the
Red Sea as its support for the RSF results in further mayhem.
With bipartisan encouragement from Capitol Hill, President Joe Biden
recently appointed Tom Perriello as U.S. special envoy for Sudan, and
he has hit the ground running, pressing all parties to return to a
more inclusive negotiating table.
What was missing 20 years ago was any biting consequences for those
committing genocide and any leverage for mediators like Perriello to
use at the negotiating table. This time, the United States in
partnership with its allies should utilize the vast array of policy
tools of financial pressure such as targeted network sanctions and
anti-money laundering measures.
These should be deployed in a rapidly escalating fashion against the
dark money arrangements fueling the war, particularly against those
benefiting from the gold being smuggled out of Sudan to the UAE.
With the Sudanese people crying out for peace, U.S. envoy Perriello
seeks to turbocharge efforts at a cease-fire, humanitarian aid
deliveries and a return to civilian rule. But mediation efforts need
to be backed by policies that alter the war’s incentive structure by
creating consequences for conflict gold trading networks and arms
providers fueling the war.
As it stands now, only the vultures – whether birds or war profiteers
– are benefiting from the slow collapse of the country.
Don Cheadle is an actor and activist. John Prendergast is co-founder
of The Sentry.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2024/04/29/sudan-war-hunger-humanitarian-crisis-darfur-genocide/73353007007/
END
______________________
John Ashworth
ashwor...@gmail.com
+254 725 926 297 (Kenya mobile, WhatsApp and Signal)
PO Box 403 - 00206, Kiserian, Kenya
As it stands now, only the vultures – whether birds or war profiteers
– are benefiting from the slow collapse of the country.
Don Cheadle and John Prendergast
USA Today
29 April 2024
As the 21st century’s first genocide unfolded in the middle of the
Sahara Desert 20 years ago, we were part of an unprecedentedly large
coalition of citizens pressing the U.S. government to act. Sudan’s
western region of Darfur was being ripped apart by militias
collectively known as the Janjaweed (“devils on horseback”). Hundreds
of thousands were killed, and millions rendered homeless.
We participated in rallies and met with politicians from all over the
United States, traveled through rebel-held areas of Darfur, brought TV
crews to spend time with refugees in the camps in Chad, co-authored an
otherwise obscure book on Darfur that ended up a New York Times
best-seller, and were part of an anti-genocide people’s movement
called Save Darfur that was aimed at stopping the atrocities and
supporting a peaceful democratic transition in Sudan.
Wouldn’t it be great if we could say this effort had a happy ending?
Tragically, genocide has returned to Darfur, along with mass
atrocities being committed throughout Sudan in an escalating year-old
war. But this time it has been met with a deafening silence. The only
living creatures that are thriving in this environment are the
vultures, feeding on corpses left in the streets to rot.
The worst hunger crisis in the world in decades
Having spent the past two decades being organized and armed by the
Sudanese army, the Janjaweed – since expanded and now known as the
Rapid Support Forces (RSF) – turned on their former army benefactors a
year ago and have taken over large swathes of Sudan in one of the
world’s deadliest civil wars.
With 10.7 million people already displaced, Sudan has the largest
child refugee crisis in the world. The death toll is unknown because
the nation’s medical system is collapsing. In one Darfur displaced
camp, a child is dying every two hours. Immunizations have been
dramatically reduced, setting many areas up for fresh epidemics. The
school system has also cratered, while kidnapping and sexual slavery
are on the rise. The capital city of Khartoum is being destroyed block
by block, and religious persecution is spiking.
Experts say this is becoming the worst hunger crisis in the world in
decades. Seven million people face the prospect of mass starvation by
June. The suffering may be off camera now, but it won’t be in a few
months when babies are starving en masse.
The RSF is militarily backed by the United Arab Emirates and has
profited greatly from selling conflict gold to Dubai, Chad and Russia,
which seeks a base on the Red Sea. The RSF has used genocidal violence
and mass rape against non-Arab ethnic groups in Darfur and mass
atrocities in other regions to gain territory.
The corruption-fueled Sudanese Armed Forces is backed by Egypt and
Iran, with Iranian drones providing recent battlefield momentum. The
SAF is dropping barrel bombs on urban neighborhoods, arresting and
torturing Sudanese pro-democracy activists in ghost houses, and
committing other grave rights violations.
The result is a country hurtling toward state collapse and mass
famine, which will likely drive millions of Sudanese across an already
fragile swath of Africa and northward across the Mediterranean Sea
into Europe.
The Sudanese people are crying out for peace. Will the US listen?
By sending arms to their respective Sudanese allies and allowing
Sudanese gold to be smuggled to their countries, the UAE and Egypt are
undermining their longer-term goals in Sudan. The chance of their
desired end – a satellite Sudanese regime beholden to them – is
diminishing. Sudanese investment opportunities have become largely
illicit.
Hopes for Sudan becoming a breadbasket for the Red Sea region have
been dashed. Islamist and Iranian influences are expanding. And the
UAE and Egypt will be increasingly tied to the horrors unfolding in
Sudan.
Russia is similarly undermining its chances to establish a base on the
Red Sea as its support for the RSF results in further mayhem.
With bipartisan encouragement from Capitol Hill, President Joe Biden
recently appointed Tom Perriello as U.S. special envoy for Sudan, and
he has hit the ground running, pressing all parties to return to a
more inclusive negotiating table.
What was missing 20 years ago was any biting consequences for those
committing genocide and any leverage for mediators like Perriello to
use at the negotiating table. This time, the United States in
partnership with its allies should utilize the vast array of policy
tools of financial pressure such as targeted network sanctions and
anti-money laundering measures.
These should be deployed in a rapidly escalating fashion against the
dark money arrangements fueling the war, particularly against those
benefiting from the gold being smuggled out of Sudan to the UAE.
With the Sudanese people crying out for peace, U.S. envoy Perriello
seeks to turbocharge efforts at a cease-fire, humanitarian aid
deliveries and a return to civilian rule. But mediation efforts need
to be backed by policies that alter the war’s incentive structure by
creating consequences for conflict gold trading networks and arms
providers fueling the war.
As it stands now, only the vultures – whether birds or war profiteers
– are benefiting from the slow collapse of the country.
Don Cheadle is an actor and activist. John Prendergast is co-founder
of The Sentry.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2024/04/29/sudan-war-hunger-humanitarian-crisis-darfur-genocide/73353007007/
END
______________________
John Ashworth
ashwor...@gmail.com
+254 725 926 297 (Kenya mobile, WhatsApp and Signal)
PO Box 403 - 00206, Kiserian, Kenya
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages