No to War, a Resounding No
By Thanaa Abdeen
A sense of frustration and dismay has overwhelmed me deeply since the outbreak of the war because I was convinced it wouldnt happen, but my hopes were dashed, and it did. Since then and until recently, I distanced myself from the media, except for the headlines confirming ongoing clashes between the parties and the dire humanitarian conditions for those affected.
I had no desire to engage in my journalistic work and avoided focusing on war-related matters. I remained in this state until recently when some colleagues requested it, asking me to write about certain issues, so I returned, but at a slow pace.
I decided to write about the conditions of female journalists, colleagues in the profession, with the help of a fellow who played a crucial role in bringing me back to the journalism scene.
However, the tragedies and horrors I heard from some female colleagues who witnessed the events of the war in Khartoum and Darfur made me feel like I was listening to a horror movie story, which is, in fact, a grim reality fit to be a full-fledged book with multiple chapters.
Sleep fled from my eyes as I imagined their situations and the situations of thousands like them who went through the same horrors of killings, looting, burning, and witnessing bodies strewn in the streets. Many of them need psychological support to return to their normal lives.
Colleague Aisha Al-Samani, who is still in Khartoum due to her fathers health condition, wishes for death for herself when the battles intensify in her area, hoping that her family members remain safe. This is in addition to threats of assault, murder, robbery, and looting.
As for colleague Inaam Ahmadai from the city of Geneina, she witnessed many horrors before moving east to Kassala State. She narrowly escaped death multiple times and her family was in danger due to her work.
To those who call for the continuation of the war, how do they view these horrors? How do they sleep, and how do they live their lives when every citizen in Sudan is affected by this war in one way or another? They all need psychological support to return to their normal state.
We say it loudly: No to war, a resounding no!
