UN Official: Ethnic Violence in Sudan, Alarming

Sudan Events – Agencies

The United Nations Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Alice Wairimu Nderitu, expressed her alarm at the serious allegations of ethnically motivated violence and deliberate attacks against medical personnel and facilities, in the escalating clashes between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) – which could constitute international crimes.
In a statement on Thursday, Alice expressed her deep concern about the escalation of violence in Sudan since the middle of this month, particularly in Wad Madani, El Fasher, and Nyala.
She said that the clashes in Wad Madani led to random killings, attacks against civilians, injuries, looting, and arrests, amid allegations that a number of them were committed on the basis of identity. She also reiterated her fears that the continuing spread of violence could engulf the entire country.
The Adviser called for renewed international attention to the Sudanese crisis, which does not seem to have an end in sight, and stressed that the situation in the country “cannot and must not become a forgotten crisis.”
She said the world must respond to the atrocities in Sudan. She added that the terrorism and brutal violence already inflicted on entire societies, simply because of their identity, shows in the most horrific terms what will continue to happen unless urgent international attention is directed to this situation.
The Special Adviser reiterated her call on all parties to the conflict to lay down their arms and stop targeting civilians immediately. It reminded the parties of their obligations under international human rights law and international humanitarian law, as well as the obligations they made to protect civilians in the Jeddah Declaration.
“It is not just that such attacks were not avoided, but on the contrary, all indications point to their deliberate commission,” she said.
She added that the deliberate targeting of people based on their identity was preceded by dehumanization and hate speech. The UN official referred to her meetings with Sudanese refugees in Chad in October, and said that she listened to brave people who described in great detail the violence they and their families were exposed to.