War Fantasy ``Militias`` in Sudan: The War Might End, But When Will Life Begin?
By Faisal Al Baqir
First Orbit: ``Oh, all the globes of the earth... oh, dyed in blood... stained with the injustice of the African boy... and the rule of the American... your nation... yes... Sudan our country... yes... yes... we remove mines... we plant, the melody of sighs, a tune...`` - Mohammed Hassan Salem Hamid
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I write on Monday morning, October 30, 2023, exactly six months and two weeks after the ``militias`` war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces. This catastrophic war, which erupted in the ``fierce battles`` in the sky and land of the countrys capital, Khartoum, on the morning of April 15, 2023, between the sounds of anti-aircraft guns, destructive and burning projectiles from warplanes, was a tragic sight that the residents of Khartoum were not accustomed to. They thought it was a ``safe and secure`` city, far from ``armed conflict`` and ``total destruction,`` or what is called ``internal conflict`` and ``widespread`` in the language of international humanitarian law.
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Then, the deadly ``germ`` of war quickly spread to Greater Darfur, although Darfur, which has ``enough of its own troubles,`` had already taken its share, and more, in wars and armed conflicts. The ``virus`` of war expanded to reach North Kordofan, turning large parts of the country into an ``armed conflict`` area. The rest became areas to which survivors of the wars horrors and burning heat fled. Men, women, young men, young women, children, and people with disabilities carry with them the ``traumas`` of war, and the deep sadness of leaving their homes due to fleeing and escaping death. This ``escape and flight`` from death due to war is what is called ``forced displacement`` in the language and literature of international humanitarian law, turning civilians in the new areas into ``internally displaced persons,`` and turning them into ``refugees`` if circumstances and fate allow them to cross the ``border`` to another country. They continue, from there and until further notice, the journey of fear of the future and the search for protection, security, and reassurance, which is no longer necessarily clear to all of them.
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The individual and collective memory of Sudanese men and women will remain alive and lasting, remembering with deep sadness April 15, 2023, as the day when the streets and roads of Khartoum were no longer ``passable and safe,`` as people used to stroll in its center and outskirts, spending their mornings and days in a ``peaceful struggle`` for ``means of livelihood,`` and relaxing in its gentle evenings with family, loved ones, friends, and acquaintances, conversing before the ``outbreak`` or, lets say, ``explosion`` of the time bomb of war, which is destructive, sinful, and accursed, turning the sky and land of the countrys capital into an ``urban war`` zone and a fierce battlefield between the army forces and the Rapid Support Forces, and this is a long story.
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These days, after six months and a bit, the second round of the awaited (Jeddah Negotiations) is taking place in Jeddah city in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The negotiating delegations arrived on Thursday, October 26, and the negotiating round began with representatives of the two sides of the ``militias`` war (the army and the Rapid Support Forces). This time, the negotiations are shrouded in complete secrecy, as the ``mediators`` and ``facilitators`` have placed a tight veil of concealment over what is happening in the negotiating halls. This opens the door wide for the spread of rumors and misleading and false news. Despite this dark climate and the absence of information, most people look forward with great hope that this resumption of negotiations will lead to respect for the commitments that the two parties will sign.
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While the Saudi Foreign Ministry contented itself with brief official statements, stating, ``The conflicting parties in Sudan have resumed their negotiations in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with the aim of ending the war that has been ongoing for six months and has claimed the lives of more than nine thousand people,`` American officials hinted that this round, which resumed on Thursday, aims to reach a ``ceasefire,`` but it is premature to discuss a ``permanent political solution.`` Meanwhile, an official in the US State Department indicated that ``the new round will focus on ensuring the unhindered access of humanitarian aid, achieving a ceasefire, and other confidence-building measures.``
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The news of Sudans ``forgotten`` war no longer finds a place on news channels and television screens, as the lenses of international and regional satellite channels, in particular, have shifted to (Gaza), where a war of genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes, and crimes against humanity is taking place against the Palestinian people, amid a shameful and painful global silence.
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Today, six months and two weeks after the ``militias`` war, the memory of the residents of Khartoum still recalls the statements of the US embassy in Sudan, saying ``it is closely monitoring the situation in Khartoum and the surrounding areas, and there are no plans to evacuate its citizens at this time. It urges them to stay in their homes until further notice`` (source: Al Jazeera, April 16, 2023). However, the US government soon decided and managed to evacuate its citizens two weeks after the war, on April 30, 2023, and an official statement was issued by the US State Department. Specifically, from the office of State Department spokesman Matthew Miller, dated April 29, 2023, confirming ``the arrival of a convoy organized by the US government, including American citizens, Sudanese employees, and citizens of allied and partner countries, to Port Sudan on April 29`` (the text of the statement is published on the website of the US embassy in Egypt). Then, countries followed in evacuating their diplomatic missions and nationals from the area of the armed internal conflict, which is undoubtedly a legitimate right and a constitutional entitlement that governments must fulfill for their citizens in times of war and internal and external conflicts.
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Yes, the Sudanese memory is still alive and will remain burning, recording and recalling the statements of the conflicting parties, who are engaged in a fierce and destructive war on the ground, paralleled, supported, and fueled by another media war, in which little truth is published, and a lot of propaganda and war propaganda. This media war is generously funded, taking place on mostly anonymously sourced and funded electronic sites. It fills the spaces of social media with its false news and continues the war of misleading, incorrect, and false information, and hate speech prevails, as well as mobilization, especially for young people to join the parties of the war, to become fuel for a war they have no stake in, as they say.
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The six months and a bit of the war have passed slowly, with severe spatial constraints. Here are the weary Sudanese eyes, awaiting the results of the second round of Jeddah negotiations, wondering if the negotiations will succeed this time in stopping the war? And enabling the passage of humanitarian relief, and allowing free and independent press, and journalists to move freely, which is guaranteed to them by (international human rights law), and (international humanitarian law), to carry out the duty of media coverage of the armed conflict, without hindrance or targeting?
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Let us be optimistic, even a little, and call for the success of the current round of negotiations in achieving what the mediators explicitly stated or hinted at, which is in short ``ensuring unhindered access to humanitarian aid, achieving a ceasefire, and other measures to build confidence``. Then let us conclude by saying, until further notice, the difficult and legitimate question will remain: When will what the mediators seek in the Jeddah negotiations be achieved? I wish they had explained more to us about what they mean by ``other measures to build confidence``. And also the legitimate question, what is the legal and ethical responsibility of the warring parties? Have they adhered to what they agreed upon in the past, and will they adhere this time to what will be agreed upon, or will they disregard it? And what is the responsibility of the mediators and the world at large in bringing the parties back to the right path? In any case, before and after, the big question that has remained and will continue to haunt the owners of brave minds and bold, burning minds, a real and strong motivator to know the answer, which can be summarized as follows: ``The war may end, but when will life begin?`` And how different the question is from the inquiry.. Have these learned the lesson?
Last Bell: ``As you prepare your breakfast, think of others. Dont forget the food of the doves as you wage your wars. Think of others. Dont forget those who seek peace as you pay your water bill. Think of others. Those who feed on clouds as you return home. Your home. Think of others. Dont forget the people of the tents as you sleep and count the planets. Think of others. There are those who find no room to sleep, and you free yourself with metaphors. Think of others. Those who lost their right to speak as you think of the distant. Think of yourself. Say: If only I were a candle in the dark`` - Mahmoud Darwish.
faisal.elbagir@gmail.com
