People are being asked to keep in their minds Sudan, where thousands have been killed and millions displaced amid a power struggle between two army commanders.
A march and rally was held in Belfast on Saturday to highlight what organisers describe as one of the “greatest humanitarian tragedies and the largest internal displacement crises globally”.
“The international community must not forget the people of Sudan and must not forget the people of Palestine,” the organisers said.
Conflict broke out in April, 2023, between factions led by Adbel Fattah al-Burhan, the head of the interim government established following the 2019 fall of the dictator Omar al-Bashir, and his one-time deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti.
Hemedti heads the Rapid Support Forces, formed out of the feared Janjaweed militia blamed for widespread killing during previous conflicts in Sudan, including Darfur.
The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organization (WHO), in a recent report, said the ongoing hostilities are worsening the drivers of child malnutrition.
“These include a lack of access to nutritious food, safe drinking water and sanitation, and increased risk of disease.
“The situation is compounded by massive population displacement, as large numbers of people flee the conflict. Sudan is facing an ever-increasing risk of conflict-induced famine.”
It is estimated more than eight million people are displaced, while approximately 14,700 have died in the conflict.
The International Rescue Committee, the non-profit humanitarian organisation, said: “Sudan is teetering on the brink of collapse - 25 million people are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.”
“The ongoing violence is out of control. The war must end. The suffering must end,” protestors were told at the Belfast rally on Saturday, organised by the local Sudan Solidarity Group and ANAKA Women’s Collective and addressed by the Swedish-based writer and poet Najla Eltom, who lives in Sweden and Bernadette Devlin McAliskey.
Belfast doctor Manal Mahdi, from Sudan and one of the organisers, said: “We are all so worried about our families back in Sudan. The international community must not turn a blind eye to the humanitarian crisis in Sudan, particularly in El Geneina, West Darfur.”
Patrick Corrigan, Amnesty International’s director in the north, added: “People there are living in fear for their lives. Hundreds of civilians have been killed, thousands injured and over a million have now been forced to flee their homes.
“Yet, the international community has barely noticed. We need the UN Security Council to step up to protect civilians in Darfur. The call from Belfast - and from people around the world - is for an end to the violence which is taking place and wrecking people’s lives.”
