UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper and Hala Al-Karib Address UN Security Council on Sudan Crisis

Sudan: A Humanitarian Crisis and Weaponized Violence

• 🇸🇩 The situation in Sudan is described as the greatest humanitarian crisis of the 21st century, with the world urged not to look away.
• 💔 Women and children in refugee camps have endured immense suffering, including widespread sexual violence and rape used as a weapon of war.
• 🩸 The conflict is characterized by atrocities such as starvation, mass killings, ambushes of fleeing civilians, and ethnic targeting, with findings described as hallmarks of genocide.

UN Fact-Finding Mission and Accountability

• 🔍 The UN fact-finding mission's report, commissioned by the UK, details the RSF siege and capture of El Fasher, presenting chilling findings.
• ⚖️ There is a call for international criminal investigations and accountability for perpetrators and justice for victims.
• 🚫 The need to extend sanctions, increase international pressure for a humanitarian truce and ceasefire, and end arms flows fueling the conflict is emphasized.

Women's Voices and Grassroots Perspectives

• 🗣️ Hala Al-Karib, regional director of the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa, briefed the Security Council, highlighting the dire situation of women and girls.
• 📈 Civil society has long known that Sudanese women are directly targeted due to their gender and ethnicity as part of a genocide campaign.
• 💔 Documented cases of conflict-related sexual violence, including rape and sexual slavery, are extensive, with services for survivors being wholly inadequate.

Urgent Calls for International Action

• 🌍 The international community must protect civilians, develop a strategy to end hostilities, and commit to deploying a mission with a clear mandate to protect civilians across Sudan.
• 🛡️ Enabling gender-sensitive humanitarian response and unfettered access throughout Sudan is critical.
• 🤝 The Security Council must hold all parties accountable for violations of international law, including genocide and all forms of sexual and gender-based violence, and ensure Sudanese people are central to peace discussions.