After strong bipartisan encouragement from members of Congress and civil society, the Biden administration has appointed a new special envoy for Sudan, Thomas Perriello. He is a respected diplomat and former member of Congress.
Already traveling in the region, Perriello confronts a burgeoning humanitarian catastrophe in Sudan. Few know about it, as it is taking place largely off camera. But recall that two decades ago, it was only after months of unreported horror that people around the world were finally shocked by the images of genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan.
Then, five years ago, Sudan became a symbol of hope. Supporters of democracy around the world were inspired by the nation’s popular, peaceful demonstrations — and the many young women among their leaders — that led to the overthrow of the dictatorial Bashir regime and the beginning of a process that was supposed to lead to a democratic civilian government.
But then two and a half years ago, the process was halted by a military coup, led both by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), whose members and leadership are largely drawn from the Janjaweed “Devils on Horseback” who had terrorized Darfur. Few people outside Sudan took much notice of the coup; nor did the coup leaders pay any real price for their actions.
Last April, after a failed diplomatic effort by the United States and others to put the democratic process back on some sort of track, disaster: a civil war broke out between the two military forces, with devastating consequences. Very few beyond Sudan’s neighborhood have shown much concern, but we should.
While it has happened mostly off camera, consider first the human costs, as the fighting and bombing has devastated both urban neighborhoods and rural areas throughout the country. Many thousands of people have been killed. Over half of the population is in need of humanitarian assistance. Over 10 million people have left or lost their homes. There are more internally displaced people — over 7 million, including 3 million children — than any other nation. Rape has been widespread, with over 4 million women and girls at risk for sexual violence.
The size of these numbers might dull our minds, until we remember that each number represents a human being. Like each of us. Like our friends and family members.
According to analysts, the fighting is very likely to damage the spring harvest, leading to widespread famine. Hunger is already spreading, notably in Darfur. Millions of Sudanese could be facing starvation early this summer.
Yes, we are transfixed by the horrors in Ukraine and the Middle East. Surely international cameras can widen their apertures to include the victims of this new genocidal disaster. Once again, carnage in Europe and the Middle East is given far greater attention than that in Africa.
For it is not only a question of our collective national conscience — important American security interests are at stake as well.
Democracy is not only an American value. Its international promotion is also deeply in our interest. Around Sudan, local resistance committees, whose origins lie in the demonstrations against Bashir, continue to carry the banner of democracy and civilian rule. They are also helping organize local relief efforts in the midst of the fighting. USAID has supported them and should increase its assistance to them. They will need our diplomatic support, as well, in any future negotiations on their country’s future.
The leader of the RSF is closely associated with Russia. He has spoken of providing the Russians with a naval base at Port Sudan on the Red Sea. Already, the Russians are gaining ground at various points on that vital waterway. And Russian gains in Sudan are part of a fabric of growing Russian influence throughout Africa.
The SAF retains within its ranks, from the days of Bashir, Islamists who seem aligned with Iran and its regional ambitions. And, like the RSF, the SAF’s military tactics are brutal. While the RSF rapes and pillages on the ground, the SAF relies primarily on bombing RSF targets, even in civilian areas. It is reportedly arresting and even torturing members of the resistance committees.
Beyond the huge numbers of internally displaced Sudanese, there is yet another U.S. interest: a growing flow of refugees into neighboring countries who will need our help. The flows could swell the numbers of African migrants at Europe’s borders. This could in turn lead to the election of leaders who oppose American interests such as victory in Ukraine.
But surely, the American government can find the will, and yes, the heart, to give this issue higher priority. Our new special envoy for Sudan will need strong support to deal with the parties to the conflict and those who arm and fund them. (The SAF is supported primarily by Egypt and Iran. The UAE and Russia reportedly supply both funds and arms to the RSF.)
Any negotiator, however skilled, needs leverage with all the parties to a conflict. Rhetoric is nowhere near enough. Our new envoy must have in his pocket the threat and, if necessary, the reality of serious sanctions against those both within Sudan and beyond that are complicit in this little known but dire disaster. This includes the threat of serious measures against the private, corrupt business spiderwebs from which the leaders of both military sides are profiting.
In a few months, when the famine arrives and new images of wasted African children are breaking their way onto our television screens, let us hope that we and others can say, “Well, at least we are doing our best to help bring peace and then, with it, healing.”
We are not doing so now. But there is still time to do so — if barely.
Anthony Lake is a former national security advisor, and John Prendergast is co-founder of The Sentry.