By Dayo Oyinlola

As Sudan’s civil war rages on since April 2023, international and regional voices are growing louder in their calls to end the violence against civilians—particularly women and children. The ongoing conflict has seen the emergence of Islamist militias fighting alongside one of the warring factions with extreme brutality, committing grave human rights violations. Meanwhile, Sudan’s military leadership continues to reject all peace initiatives, prompting the United States to impose sanctions on Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces and Chairman of the Sovereign Council, in January 2025, as announced by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.


The sanctions were imposed due to allegations of human rights violations by the Sudanese army, including targeting civilian infrastructure, obstructing humanitarian aid deliveries, and Al-Burhan’s persistent refusal to engage in international peace efforts. The U.S. State Department stated that Al-Burhan deliberately obstructed peace initiatives, notably refusing to participate in ceasefire negotiations held in Switzerland in August 2024, which were brokered by the United States and Saudi Arabia. His stance has been widely regarded as a major obstacle to Sudan’s transition towards civilian governance.

A War Against Civilians
Since the outbreak of conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF)—both government-affiliated entities—Sudan has become a battleground for large-scale human rights abuses.


A November 2024 report by Amnesty International documented summary executions carried out by Al-Baraa bin Malik Battalion in Khartoum and Omdurman, where unarmed civilians were executed in front of their families. A survivor recounted, “They killed my father before my eyes, then burned down our house. Their only justification was that we were from a region they suspected of supporting the RSF.”


In Al-Jazira State, the militia group “Sudan Shield”, which fights alongside the army, launched an attack on the village of Kombo Tayba in February 2025, resulting in at least 26 civilian deaths, including a child, according to Human Rights Watch. The report highlighted that the attack deliberately targeted civilians and their properties, with homes looted and crops set on fire.


Similarly, a January 2025 report by a United Nations expert panel documented entire villages burned down in Darfur by militias allied with the Sudanese army, leading to mass displacement.


Women and children bear the brunt of these atrocities. A UNICEF report in December 2024 revealed that more than 300 children were killed in indiscriminate attacks by the army and its militias. Meanwhile, Save the Children reported cases of forced child recruitment by armed factions.


Women, in particular, have faced sexual violence as a weapon of war. A Sudan Tribune report in October 2024 documented mass rapes in areas controlled by the Sudanese military, with women assaulted by fighters from Al-Baraa bin Malik Battalion. Some victims resorted to suicide to escape the stigma and trauma of their assaults.

The War’s Threat to Africa
Sudan’s protracted conflict poses a direct threat to Africa’s stability:
Humanitarian Fallout: The war has displaced over 11 million people internally, while 2.7 million Sudanese refugees have fled to neighboring Egypt, Chad, and South Sudan. This has placed an immense burden on host countries already grappling with economic and security challenges. A February 2025 report by the UNHCR warned that this mass displacement could spark border conflicts and intensify ethnic tensions across the region.


Rise of Extremism: Armed groups allied with the Sudanese military, such as Al-Baraa bin Malik Battalion, pose an increasing security threat. These militias, which espouse radical Islamist ideologies and allegedly receive support from Iran—as reported by Al Jazeera in January 2025—could expand their influence beyond Sudan’s borders if left unchecked. The experience of Boko Haram in Nigeria serves as a grim precedent, demonstrating how militant factions can evolve into regional threats, raising particular concerns for Nigeria and the Sahel countries.




https://www.vanguardngr.com/2025/03/sudans-war-unchecked-violations-and-a-threat-to-africas-stability/