The British government turned down plans to prevent atrocities in Sudan despite intelligence warnings that the city of El Fasher would fall amid ethnic cleansing and possible genocide, according to a report seen by the Guardian.
An internal Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) paper from last year outlined four options for increasing civilian protection, including an international protection mechanism. However, officials chose the “least ambitious” option due to resource constraints, allocating an additional £10 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross and other organisations.
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces captured El Fasher last month, immediately carrying out ethnically motivated mass killings and rapes. Thousands of residents are missing. The conflict has been marked by widespread sexual violence against women and girls.
Shayna Lewis of the US-based organisation Paema said: “Atrocities are not natural disasters – they are a political choice that are preventable if there is political will. Now the UK government is complicit in the ongoing genocide of the people of Darfur.”
The Independent Commission for Aid Impact review found that funding constraints compromised the UK’s ability to protect women and girls. A promised programme for Sudanese women and girls will not be ready until 2026 at the earliest.
Sarah Champion, chair of the parliamentary international development select committee, said: “Prevention and early intervention should be core to all FCDO work, but sadly they are often seen as a ‘nice to have’. In a time of rapidly reducing aid budgets, this is a dangerously shortsighted approach.”
