Danish Refugee Council Chief Calls for International Pressure to End Conflict

Sudan’s brutal civil war between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises with millions suffering displacement and severe food insecurity. What is happening in Sudan is widely considered genocide, including by the United States, and is fueling regional instability.

To get a clearer picture of the scale of the dire humanitarian crisis, Foreign policy I spoke with Charlotte Slente, Secretary General of the Danish Refugee Council, who recently traveled to eastern Chad and met Sudanese refugees – including families who fled the city of El Fasher. The Rapid Support Forces were accused of committing a massacre in the city of El Fasher, which they controlled last October. The mass killings in the area were so widespread that what appeared to be piles of bodies and blood could be seen in satellite images.

Slenty said that the situation was “terrifying” and “a disaster,” stressing that the refugees she spoke with were suffering from deep trauma and had witnessed “things that no human being should ever see.”

In the face of the enormous challenges posed by the crisis, Clenti also discussed the need to exert sustained political pressure on the various parties involved in this “neglected” conflict in order to bring an end to the fighting. “The negative stance taken by the international community for more than two years has allowed the worst hunger and displacement crisis in the world to occur,” Silenti said.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Foreign policy: I recently traveled to eastern Chad. What did you see and learn?

Charlotte Slenty: I have been in the capital and the border area between Chad and Sudan for a few days. I had the opportunity to meet some refugees who had just come to Chad – refugees outside El Fasher. And then I visited some of what we would call old camps, which are about two and a half years old, with some refugees who came in the early stages of the civil war in Sudan.

In terms of the human side of this, both situations were terrifying. The new families we meet have survived carnage of proportions I don’t think we can even imagine – things no human being should ever see. People tell us about aerial bombardments, houses being burned, and being left with nothing on their heads and feet.

A family I spoke to, a young couple and their two-year-old child. The young man’s brother was killed while they were escaping. He was asked if he was from the opposition group and he said: “No, I am just a civilian.” He was shot at close range and everyone was watching. Their 7-year-old child was also shot dead.

This family told us about their way to Chad. They passed through 40 checkpoints and there was a lot of violence. They were plundered along the way. They were in a state of shock, just blank faces.

About 90,000 [people] They managed to escape, but there are still about 100,000 people in El Fasher. What is their situation? I don’t think anyone really knows the circumstances of these people. And what we’ve seen at the border, which has surprised many, is that relatively few people are coming into Chad as of last week. At various border crossings, there were between 200 and 500 refugees entering daily, which was below the expected level.

There is a humanitarian catastrophe unfolding with a level of suffering that is difficult to comprehend. I spoke with between 40 and 50 refugees. Many of them had been there for just over two years. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a state of shock to the degree these people experienced. a lot [of them] Even now, after two years, they have not been able to deal with their situation and what they went through.

Unaddressed trauma occurs, despite active reporting mechanisms, including from us, and efforts to refer people to qualified psychotherapy and somatic therapy. Many of them were also raped and faced a lot of violence. Many people came with physical injuries as a result of shooting or beatings. Everyone told stories of physical violence, and there was not a single person who had not witnessed the killing of a relative. It is an absolutely overwhelming situation for these people.

FP: It looks absolutely terrifying.

Customer Services: Yes.

But what also stood out was the tremendous hospitality shown by Chad, a very low Human Development Index country. There are extraordinary needs, especially in the eastern part, for people who lack access to any kind of services and infrastructure. There is a very noticeable degree of poverty. Sometimes the host community of these refugee camps is worse off than the refugee camps themselves.

Chadians who were living in Sudan also returned to their homeland in addition to nearly 800,000 Sudanese refugees who fled to Chad due to their dire needs. Refugees are taken care of first. But many returning Chadians have not lived in Chad for decades. They don’t have anywhere to go. They face similarly harsh conditions. So, this is a very big task for a country like Chad. It is very important that the international community supports Chad’s role as host. If not, Chad will at some point say: “Sorry guys, we can’t do this because it will destabilize our country.”

FP: As someone who has traveled to conflict zones around the world, how does what is happening in Sudan compare to other crises you have focused on during your work?

Customer Services: The crisis has been overlooked for too long, and has been devastating and horrific from the beginning. El Fasher is just one of many links. And let us remember that there are still other places under siege. We have places like Kadugli under siege where similar things can happen.

We have a crisis in Sudan where 30 million people need humanitarian assistance. It is half the population – the largest number in the history of humanitarian records in terms of emergency crisis and number of people affected. It is also the place where we have seen the largest number of internally displaced people on the planet. More than 10 million displaced people inside Sudan. And 2.6 million refugees in neighboring countries.

Then we have the food security situation, with nearly 25 million people facing high levels of acute food insecurity. It is estimated that twelve million people are at risk of gender-based violence. The numbers are so large that we cannot even imagine them.

The fact that it took an incident like El Fasher that could actually be seen from outer space for the international community to get involved in this case is appalling. It has been forgotten. Obviously, this is also due to the fact that there are many conflicts. Gaza and Ukraine have captured the attention. But the truth is that there was not enough political pressure here on the parties to stop the conflict and find a way to a ceasefire and a negotiated path to peace. There was an acceptance of complete impunity, and this is what drove the crisis to its current state.

For more than two years, the international community’s passive stance has allowed the world’s worst hunger and displacement crises to occur.

FP: Did the US aid cut worsen the crisis? Did you see signs of this when you were in eastern Chad?

Customer Services: Well, obviously. We have seen some very radical reductions by the United States in a situation where American aid has also been largely life-saving. A very large proportion of international support for the humanitarian crisis in Sudan was funded by the United States before the cuts.

Yes, the international community has supported Sudan with economic and humanitarian aid, but not to the extent required at all. Let us remember that humanitarian aid only deals with the consequences of conflict and does not address its root causes. The fact that we only took action to manage the consequences and not prevent them made this crisis much worse.

FP: To what extent did other countries, such as the United Arab Emirates, play a role in exacerbating this conflict?

Customer Services: It is fair to say that there has been geopolitical positioning by states, external states, that has exacerbated the domestic political conflict. This has led to gross human rights violations, as we saw in El Fasher. Sudan is not unique in this regard. We see that in a number of crises around the world, where you have all these agents who have different kinds of interests and are playing all kinds of geopolitical games. Yemen is a very clear example of this. You can name a few crises with similar characteristics where states have no accountability or responsibility at all to the civilian population on the ground, at all.

Sudan is a country where there are many interested parties that are not playing the role they should be playing in terms of pressuring actors on the ground to reach a ceasefire and build peace. What we are seeing is a lot of statements being released. It has a very limited impact on the ongoing humanitarian needs of people on the ground.

FP: The United States, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates are working together — as part of a group known as the Quartet — to push for an end to the war in Sudan. They called for a humanitarian truce. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also called for measures to stop the flow of weapons to the Rapid Support Forces. Is this too little, too late?

Customer Services: A lot of it is too little, too late. But this does not mean that it is irrelevant, because there are other atrocities that could happen tomorrow in Sudan. We still need that international engagement to prevent further atrocities.

We need a very sincere effort from the international community to try to convince the parties to stop this war or agree to a ceasefire. This is not a war that will be ended by military means. It requires a negotiated agreement between the two parties. This will not be easy, as it requires constant pressure from all parties. We do not need five, six, seven, or eight operations. We need coordinated action to put pressure on the parties as well.

FP: Is there anything you would like to add to help people better understand this crisis and what needs to be done to address it?

Customer Services: The international community must apply this pressure. But if you want sustainable peace in Sudan, this sustainable peace will need Sudanese leadership. You need a process where Sudan buys the buildings and then takes ownership of a process that leads to peace within the country. This is a more difficult aspect than the international pressure part. Therefore, it will require sustained pressure, and a sustained process that will receive a lot of attention and support at the international level for a very long period of time.

There are also many consequences of war for ordinary civilians that we have to deal with. It is basically a huge shock, a huge humanitarian catastrophe that we need to mitigate by the international community. Yes, help is needed within Sudan, but also in neighboring countries that bear the brunt of the responsibility of hosting all the refugees. Supporting neighboring countries like Chad and others is also extremely important.

But what I really want to say is that the culture of impunity that we are witnessing is actually truly destructive to international law and order, and to respect for international humanitarian law. After Gaza, the situation in Sudan witnessed the most violence for humanitarian workers. People are killed, kidnapped and subjected to all kinds of violence. It is a very violent and difficult place to work. Therefore, respect for international humanitarian law must be restored again so that civilians can receive assistance.

And just to remind you of this number on food insecurity. If people suffer from malnutrition for a long time, it will continue to be treated for many generations. The trauma we are witnessing will also last for generations. So, it’s about getting there and stopping this conflict.