Your browser doesn’t support HTML5
How to Put Sudan Back on the Path to Peace
The crisis in Sudan continues unabated. October 2024 saw the single largest movement of refugees from Sudan into Chad in nearly a year. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield commended Chad for welcoming these refugees, noting that “they were fleeing nothing less than death itself.”
“Death by bullets or death by shelling. Death by disease or death by hunger. Death of hope and death of ambition. ... And this catastrophe, somehow, only continues to worsen, as the Rapid Support Forces, Sudanese Armed Forces, and other armed groups violently attack civilians across the country, while depriving them of the lifesaving assistance they so desperately need.”
Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield laid out three primary calls to action in response to the crisis in Sudan.
“First, as millions face famine and acute hunger, the international community must help get lifesaving assistance to areas in dire need, such as El Fasher, Sennar, Dilling, Kadugli, and Khartoum. ... We are particularly alarmed that instead of facilitating aid, the authorities in Port Sudan continue to undermine, intimidate, and target humanitarian officials.”
Rather than wield humanitarian assistance as a political tool, Sudanese authorities need to expand and streamline the movement of humanitarian personnel and goods, urged Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield. It is also necessary to extend the authorization for the Adre border crossing, open additional cross-border and crossline access routes, and facilitate airport access for humanitarian purposes.
Second, the international community needs to do more to protect civilians. The U.S. supports the recommendation to establish a compliance mechanism to ensure commitments to protect civilians and adhere to international humanitarian law are being implemented on the ground. The international community should also begin considering options to establish a compliance and monitoring mission to help protect civilians and support the implementation of any future cessation of hostilities.
Finally, the international community must support a transition to inclusive and democratic civilian governance, explained Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield:
“Let me be clear, the current path of the belligerents in this conflict is unacceptable. The [Sudanese Armed Force’s] refusal to participate in a political process, the failure by both sides to adhere to international law obligations, it cannot, and should not, continue.”
“And so, we must all give more and do more,” said Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield, “to put Sudan back on the path to democracy, freedom, and hope.”