r/SudanGenocide

Translated Article:

Day after day, pressure is being exerted on the parties to the conflict and the entities supporting the war in Sudan through the imposition of American and European sanctions targeting groups and entities linked to the war.

Last Friday, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on eight individuals and entities linked to procurement and recruitment networks that continue to fuel the war between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces.

This move was preceded by similar steps from the European Union and the United States targeting individuals and institutions that fuel the conflict in Sudan, but the sanctions have not yielded tangible results in stopping the war that has turned Sudan into one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises.

As international powers resort to brandishing the weapon of sanctions in an effort to stop the fighting and exert pressure, the nature of those sanctions and restrictions remains to be seen in providing a solution.

American diplomats who spoke to Sudan Tribune previously advocate the principle of putting pressure on the parties to the conflict in Sudan, and taking successive and calculated steps to impose sanctions on the parties involved and those who reject the path of peace and negotiation.

But, after more than three years of using this weapon, the fundamental question remains: Have the sanctions succeeded in drying up the sources of war financing, or are they merely symbolic measures that have been circumvented by shadow economy networks and war financiers?

Experts believe that the insistence of the military leaders in the army and the Rapid Support Forces on achieving field victories and staying away from the negotiating tables represents the strongest factor in the continuation of the war without being affected by the swords of international sanctions.

Khaled Omar Youssef, Vice President of the Sudanese Congress Party, sees Burhan's recent rejection of the American paper on a humanitarian truce, which Trump's advisor spoke about, as evidence of the party obstructing the cessation of bloodshed. In a Facebook post, he indicated that the inability to accept the ceasefire plan reflects Burhan's lack of will for peace.

The Sudanese Foreign Ministry denied on Saturday the validity of what Massad Boulos, senior advisor to the U.S. President on Arab and African affairs, reported regarding the Transitional Sovereignty Council's rejection of an American paper related to efforts to end the war in the country.

The ministry said in a statement that Boulos's remarks before the U.N. Security Council on Friday, regarding the Sovereignty Council's rejection of the proposal, were "inaccurate" and did not reflect the actual positions consistently held by the Sudanese government and its various institutions, including the Transitional Sovereignty Council. It added that the Sudanese government has dealt positively and responsibly with initiatives and proposals aimed at ending the war.

The Sudanese government has adopted a vision for protecting civilians and creating the appropriate conditions to stop the war, which it presented to the Security Council in December 2025, but it does not find recognition from the “Establishment” alliance led by the Rapid Support Forces.

Sanctions in the Balance

Kenyan political analyst and Horn of Africa specialist Joseph Otieno believes that Western sanctions face a structural challenge related to the nature of the modern “war economy” in Africa.

In an interview with Sudan Tribune, Otieno believes that the U.S. and European sanctions clash with the fact that the financing and arming networks of the parties to the conflict in Sudan engineered a parallel and complex financial system years before the war.

He argued that these networks rely on safe havens outside the traditional Western banking system and operate through front companies in regional and international countries that do not strictly adhere to U.S. decisions.

He stated that freezing assets and imposing travel bans on some military leaders and their affiliated companies has a significant moral and political impact, but in practice it does not prevent the flow of weapons or fuel.

The Kenyan expert cited Sudanese gold as an example, which he believes remains the most liquid commodity and is smuggled and sold for cash or through direct barter outside of international oversight, making sanctions often seem toothless in deterring fighters.

Lack of Will

For his part, Sudanese political analyst Mohamed Idris, speaking to Sudan Tribune, offers a more in-depth analysis of the impact of these decisions on the structure of the internal conflict and their effect on the citizen.

Idris says that the human rights and local welcome for the recent sanctions is understandable, as it breaks the barrier of impunity and sends a message that there is international monitoring of violations. But he then points to the economic reality:

“After more than 37 months of fighting, the warring parties have adapted to these restrictions by deepening the shadow economy, seizing control of remaining local resources, and relying on alternative, informal channels.”

Idris points to a crucial point related to the implementation mechanism, which is that the main problem is not in the issuance of the sanctions decision, but in the mechanism for monitoring it and closing the loopholes.

He emphasizes that as long as the international community is content with managing the crisis and issuing condemnations without a strict monitoring mechanism on Sudan’s land and sea borders, and without real pressure on regional countries that facilitate the flow of logistical support, these sanctions will remain limited-impact measures that will not lead to an immediate cessation of hostilities.

Ilham Mohamed Al-Sir, a member of the resistance committees and a civil society activist, believes that while sanctions are legally important, they lack effective tools to compel the warring parties to stop fighting.

Ilham told Sudan Tribune that this calls for tight, strict, firm, and decisive international coordination regarding all the disputes between the partners and the positions adopted by the African Union in support of the government led by Burhan behind the scenes, in her opinion.

Source: Sudan Tribune

Translated Article

The sexual exploitation scandal of Sudanese refugee women in refugee camps in eastern Chad, in what has become known as the issue of “sex for relief”, has sparked a wave of widespread condemnation from regional organizations, community leaders, activists and politicians, following the acknowledgement of the French organization “Médecins Without Borders” of violations committed by workers and contractors related to its humanitarian operations, in a case described as one of the most serious violations that affected the most vulnerable groups of war victims.

A regional humanitarian organization has warned that the case reveals serious structural imbalances within relief environments, especially in areas of conflict and mass displacement, calling for deeper reforms in the systems of control, accountability and protection of displaced people and refugees.

The organization's position came after the announcement by “Doctors Without Borders” last weekend that 18 employees and contractors were dismissed and banned from re-hiring them, after investigations into 59 allegations of misconduct, including exploitation, harassment and sexual assault against Sudanese refugees fleeing the Darfur war in eastern Chad, which hosts about 1.48 million Sudanese refugees according to UN estimates.

The African-European Organization for Humanitarian Action and Development said in a statement that the seriousness of the issue is not limited to the facts reported, but extends to the fragility it reveals in protection systems, especially when war, displacement, poverty and the collapse of traditional protection networks intersect with unequal power relations between aid providers and beneficiaries.
The rapid expansion of humanitarian operations in eastern Chad, and the increasing reliance on local employment, temporary contracts and day-to-day employment due to scarce funding, have created oversight gaps that have raised the risk of abuse, with refugees dependent on basic assistance for survival.

According to the statement, the case began in late 2024 when the organization received reports from Sudanese refugees who spoke of serious violations committed by people related to its operations. Subsequent investigations showed the involvement of employees, contractors, daily workers, external contractors and suppliers.

The organization pointed out that press reports, including Associated Press investigations, revealed allegations of food, water, milk and job opportunities are swapped for sexual practices, as well as targeting underage girls in some cases, amid indications of recurring patterns that may reflect the existence of organized exploitation networks.

Although welcoming the disciplinary actions taken by Doctors Without Borders, the organization considered that internal investigations alone are not enough to ensure full accountability, noting that what was revealed may only represent “the top of the iceberg”, in light of the fear of many victims of social stigma or revenge.

In a related development, the government of a coalition established in Nyala, western Sudan, decided to suspend the activities of the French organization “Docins Without Borders” in areas under its control over the background of the issue.

The head of the National Commission for Humanitarian Access, Izz al-Din al-Safi, said that the “peace government” will not tolerate any practices that harm the dignity of the Sudanese or exploit their humanitarian conditions, stressing that the accusations require a transparent investigation and accountability for those involved.

He also called on MSF to cooperate fully with investigations and provide the necessary information and documentation in support of justice and justice for victims.

The African-European Organization for Humanitarian Action and Development stressed that these violations represent an abuse of power, not just individual offenses, because humanitarian workers have actual or perceived influence on refugees' access to basic services, adding that their danger is compounded when they are issued by people entrusted with protection and care tasks.

The organization warned that the continuation of such practices may erode the confidence of refugee communities in humanitarian institutions, and make victims more reluctant to seek help or report violations, pointing out that some community leaders have had to impose restrictions on the movement of girls to protect them from contact with relief workers.

The organization called for the establishment of independent, safe and confidential channels for receiving complaints that take into account specificity and cultural sensitivities, with the involvement of women, community leaders and refugee representatives in monitoring and reporting mechanisms, and the implementation of awareness programs for the rights of beneficiaries and available means of protection.

It also recommended that the results of investigations be published transparently while protecting the identities of victims, establishing common registers at the humanitarian sector level of persons dismissed for misconduct to prevent their movement between organizations, and obliging workers to conduct periodic training on the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse, as well as providing sustainable psychological, social and legal support to survivors and ensuring their right to redress and compensation.

The protection of human dignity must remain the basic criterion for the success of any humanitarian intervention, warning that failure to do so does not only damage the reputation of one organization, but also undermines confidence in the entire international humanitarian system.
Sky News