(RepublicanNews.org) – More than a year into the current civil war in Sudan, campaigners want to know why the White House has remained tight-lipped on the conflict that has so far claimed the lives of 150,000.
In April, on the first anniversary of the outbreak of war, campaigners presented a petition imploring President Joe Biden to use his position to speak about the bloodshed. Despite the 15,000 signatures, Amnesty International has complained that the Biden administration has said and done next to nothing to bring an end to the conflict.
The Sudanese war is being fought by two rival factions: the Sudan Armed Forces, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo’s paramilitary forces known as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Both sides stand accused of committing war crimes, with members of the RSF being singled out in particular for crimes of ethnic cleansing and other crimes against humanity. Each faction has been accused of using starvation as a weapon. According to the UN, 18 million Sudanese are facing acute hunger, with aid workers unable to reach them due to the extreme violence across the country.
The International Rescue Committee has identified the Sudanese war as the crisis most likely to deteriorate further throughout 2024, describing the country as being “in freefall.” Nine million civilians have been forced to flee their homes amidst the violence and 25 million, or half the population, need help from international aid agencies. Nearly a quarter of a million children are expected to die of starvation over the coming months.
International aid workers and officials working on the ground in Sudan have expressed dismay at the lack of international outcry over the war, with some critics asking why the Biden administration seemingly has not applied any diplomatic pressure to try to alleviate the suffering. Alan Boswell, from the International Crisis Group, compared the White House’s apparent indifference to its enthusiastic involvement in the Ukrainian and Gazan conflicts.
White House spokesman John Kirkby, however, has previously rebuffed such criticisms. Kirkby has previously told the press that the White House is “diplomatically engaged” with Sudan and is keen to see an end to the conflict.
Copyright 2024, RepublicanNews.org
