Sudan needs neighbours more than ever during worst conflict

On Wednesday, one of the world’s worst conflicts entered its third year with no end in sight. At the Sudan London conference this week, the Kenyan government struggled to refute accusations of supporting the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and pursuing economic interests in Sudan.

Sudan has become a casualty of global leaders’ focus on Ukraine and Palestine. The international community has largely ignored the crisis, enabling one of the world’s biggest humanitarian disasters. 150,000 people have been killed, more than double the death toll in Ukraine (67,000) and triple that of Gaza (52,000).

Over 11 million people, about a third of Ukraine’s (38 million) and Gaza’s (2 million) combined populations, have been displaced. Despite this, only 6 percent of the $4.2 billion in humanitarian aid needed by the U.S. has been pledged. Amnesty International’s recent report, “They Raped All of Us”, documents 16 cases of sexual assault, including gang rape and sexual slavery, by RSF soldiers, often in front of families.

The use of torture and cruel, inhuman treatment included the use of sharp knives and pouring hot liquids on their bodies. Most survivors still suffer from psychological trauma, resulting in recurring pain, memory loss, and irregular periods. Stigmatised by society, fearful of retribution, and unable to access health and psychosocial services, these women continue to walk wounded.

The true injustice is not that the compulsive brutality in Sudan has failed to drive its leaders to a ceasefire, but that Africa and the global community have repeatedly failed to hold perpetrators of genocide accountable.

Since the Janjaweed (a predecessor to the RSF) became infamous for conflict related sexual violence in 2004, tens of thousands of people have been killed, and hundreds of women and girls raped by RAF and RSF soldiers.

While the mass violence eventually led to the International Criminal Court charging former Sudan President Omar Bashir for three counts of genocide and crimes against humanity, no state, Kenya included, had the guts to hand him over.

Ultimately, it is impunity and a lack of accountability that are responsible for the current abuse. The SAF recapture of greater Khartoum and the Presidential palace last month offers a new opportunity for peace, reconciliation, and justice.

As Liberian Charles Taylor famously told the BBC in the 1980s, by seizing Monrovia, the rebels became the government, and a new status quo was in place. The RSF and SAF must urgently come to the peace table. The RSF must stop this sexual violence and all other attacks on civilians.

Emergency assistance must be accelerated, and the UN and AU provided with unfettered humanitarian and monitoring access. The call for accountability must get louder in neighbouring capitals and those gilded five-star AU and UN summit rooms. The current arms embargo must be enforced and expanded from Darfur to all of Sudan.

The Kenyan government must address the controversy surrounding its hosting of RSF leaders and their allies, who signed a transitional constitution last month. Allegations from former Deputy President Gachagua, claiming President Ruto is personally trading gold with RSF leader Hemedti Dagalo, have added to the tension.

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi's dismissal of these claims is insufficient to restore international confidence in Kenya’s impartiality or to resume the Sh6.2 billion in exports frozen by Sudan.

International justice would have been better served by arresting RSF leaders rather than facilitating their presence in Kenya. Saudi Arabia and Egypt back the SAF, while the UAE supports the RSF, further complicating the situation. Without a military weapons ban and decisive negotiations, impunity and suffering will persist.

The Kenyan government must pay closer attention to its role, particularly as Sudan’s conflict impacts industries such as tea, tobacco, and seed oil. The National Assembly must act in solidarity with the people of Sudan.