Protesters gathered near Downing Street on 30 October 2024, holding signs that read 'Sudan's people have a right to freedom, peace and justice.' The demonstration highlighted growing international concern over the ongoing conflict in Sudan and the alleged role of external actors.
Demand for Accountability
Dr Lutz Oette, Professor of International Human Rights Law at SOAS University of London, and Anna Snowdon, a trustee of Women's Education Partnership, have responded to a recent article by Nesrine Malik that called out the primary sponsors of Sudan's crisis. They argue that the United Arab Emirates must be held responsible for its part in the war.
Oette and Snowdon emphasize that while UN and African fact-finding bodies have focused on the warring parties' responsibility for international law violations, it is now time to investigate the UAE's involvement. This includes documenting failures to prevent genocide in Darfur and other humanitarian law violations, as well as potential liability for international crimes.
Broader International Involvement
The experts note that the inquiry should not be limited to the UAE. Multiple reports indicate that several states in the region and beyond have supported both sides, fueling the war, particularly through drone warfare. Foreign businesses and other actors have also been pivotal in sustaining and benefiting from Sudan's war economy.
An official report documenting violations by external actors could spur overdue measures and influence the political calculus of influential states like the UAE, which have faced no accountability to date. Diminished support for the warring parties might raise prospects for an end to the fighting.
Reparations and Reconstruction
Oette and Snowdon stress that ending the war would bring into focus who should provide reparations to victims and pay for reconstruction. Sudan's people have a right to freedom, peace, and justice, which requires an end to interference from within or outside their country.
Anna Snowdon highlights that successive British governments have overlooked the UAE's role as a primary sponsor of the Sudan calamity. Despite denials, the UAE has long supported the Rapid Support Forces with money, weapons, and mercenaries. The UK, as the UN Security Council penholder for Sudan, must do more to end the war.
Snowdon's charity, Women's Education Partnership, enables disadvantaged women and girls in Sudan and South Sudan to access education. Since the war started, local staff have been displaced, and students are trying to follow degree courses online, with many traumatized or disappeared. Sudanese women played a major role in the 2018-19 revolution, and Snowdon hopes they will flourish when peace returns.
