Masalit genocide (2023–present) explained

2023 Masalit genocide
Location:West Darfur, Sudan
Date:24 April 2023 – present
Partof:the War crimes during the Sudanese civil war (2023–present)
Map:West Darfur in Sudan.svg
Target:Masalit people
Fatalities:At least 10,000–15,000
Perpetrator:Rapid Support Forces and Arab Janjaweed tribes

The Masalit genocide is an ongoing genocide of the Masalit ethnic group in Sudan perpetrated by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of Sudan and its allies. The genocide began in 2023 during the Sudanese civil war when the RSF began committing a series of massacres and deliberate mass killing of Masalit civilians in West Dafur.

Massacres of the ongoing genocide include the Ardamata massacre, Misterei massacre and the Battle of Geneina, all of which targeted Masalit civilians within the area of Geneina.[1] [2] These incidents have been described by The Economist,[3] Genocide Watch, US academic Eric Reeves, and Khamis Abakar (Governor of West Darfur), as a genocide.

Background

In December 2020, Sudan started to deploy troops to South Darfur "in large numbers", following recent tribal violence between the Masalit and Fula.[4]

Massacres

Following the Battle of Geneina, more than a thousand bodies were left in mass graves in the town of El Geneina.[5]

In January 2024, it was revealed that a report to the UN Security Council estimated that 10,000–15,000 people were killed in El Geneina.[6]

According to accounts by survivors, massacres were coordinated, specifically targeting Masalit and other dark-skinned inhabitants of Darfur, as opposed to the Sudanese Arab population. The Rapid Support Forces denied involvement, characterizing the situation as a tribal conflict, while Arab tribal leaders denied being involved in ethnic cleansing and held the Masalit responsible for starting the conflict.

Ardamata massacre

Reactions

Khamis Abakar, then governor of West Darfur, denounced the killings as "genocide".[7] He was soon after executed by RSF militants for his statements on 14 June 2023.[8] [9]

As of August 2023, there is an increasing amount of proof suggesting that the RSF is initiating a systematic purge based on ethnicity in Darfur. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has issued a warning about the potential escalation into a full-scale genocide.[10] On 10 November 2023, Filippo Grandi, the U.N. High Commissioner, drew parallels between the ongoing violence and the genocide in Darfur recognised by the U.S., where it is estimated that 300,000 people lost their lives from 2003 to 2005. He cautioned that a "similar dynamic might be unfolding."[11]

In October, Genocide Watch issued an alert concerning the situation in Sudan, explicitly characterizing the massacres performed by the Rapid Support Forces against the Masalit people as genocide.[12] This characterization was also shared by US academic Eric Reeves, specialized in Sudan's human rights record,[13] and The Economist.[14]

Josep Borrell, the chief of foreign policy for the European Union, has expressed his strong condemnation of the killing of more than 1,000 individuals in Ardamata. He has urgently appealed to the international community to take immediate action to avert a potential "genocide" in the area.[15]

The UK government,[16] witnesses and other observers described the violence in the region as tantamount to ethnic cleansing or even genocide, with non-Arab groups such as the Masalit being the primary victims.[17] Mujeebelrahman Yagoub, Assistant Commissioner for Refugees in West Darfur called the violence worse than the War in Darfur in 2003 and the Rwandan genocide in 1994.[18]

Further reading

References

Works cited

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Lisa . 8 November 2023 . RSF seize North Darfur garrison, reportedly commit mass atrocities in West Darfur . 11 November 2023 . Dabanga Radio TV Online . en-GB . 8 November 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231108120917/https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/rsf-seize-north-darfur-garrison-reportedly-commit-mass-atrocities-in-west-darfur . live .
  2. Web site: 2024-02-19 . Ardamata and Masalit massacres . UK Parliament . 1 June 2024 . 22 April 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240422163952/https://edm.parliament.uk/early-day-motion/61890/ardamata-and-masalit-massacres . live .
  3. News: Genocide returns to Darfur . The Economist . 13 November 2023 . 0013-0613 . 10 November 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231110034316/https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2023/10/05/genocide-returns-to-darfur . live .
  4. Web site: 27 December 2020 . Sudan deploys troops in South Darfur after tribal violence – report . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230928125312/https://www.reuters.com/?edition-redirect=uk . 28 September 2023 . 29 December 2020 . Reuters.
  5. News: Reuters. How Arab fighters carried out a rolling ethnic massacre in Sudan. 22 September 2023 . 12 November 2023. 6 November 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231106231402/http://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/sudan-politics-darfur/. live.
  6. News: Nichols . Michelle . 20 January 2024 . Ethnic killings in one Sudan city left up to 15,000 dead, UN report says . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240327064243/https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/ethnic-killings-one-sudan-city-left-up-15000-dead-un-report-2024-01-19/ . 27 March 2024 . 31 March 2024 . Reuters.
  7. Web site: Content . Syndicated . Darfur cities under fire as Sudanese war spreads . 15 June 2023 . WKZO Everything Kalamazoo 590 AM · 106.9 FM . en . 15 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230615225012/https://wkzo.com/2023/06/14/darfur-cities-under-fire-as-sudanese-war-spreads/ . live .
  8. Web site: West Darfur governor abducted, killed as war in Sudan spreads . 16 June 2023 . www.aljazeera.com . en . 29 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230629173150/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/6/15/west-darfur-governor-abducted-killed-as-war-in-sudan-spreads . live .
  9. Web site: 'Corpses on streets': Sudan's RSF kills 1,300 in Darfur, monitors say. Al Jazeera. 12 November 2023. 11 November 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231111110816/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/11/10/corpses-on-streets-sudans-rsf-kills-1300-in-darfur-monitors-say. live.
  10. Web site: Goldberg . Mark Leon . 17 August 2023 . Ethnic Cleansing Has Returned to Darfur. Is Genocide Next? . 14 November 2023 . UN Dispatch . en-US . 14 November 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231114055216/https://undispatch.com/ethnic-cleansing-has-returned-to-darfur-is-genocide-next/ . live .
  11. Web site: Ewing . Giselle Ruhiyyih . 11 November 2023 . UN sounds alarm on Darfur, warns world not to repeat history . 14 November 2023 . POLITICO . en . 14 November 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231114055216/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/11/11/un-sounds-alarm-on-darfur-warns-world-not-to-repeat-history-00126708 . live .
  12. Web site: Sudan Genocide Emergency – October 2023. 12 November 2023. Genocide Watch. 2 April 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240402000350/https://www.genocidewatch.com/_files/ugd/2c7d82_f3a99b0771b149bcb9579146623485e5.pdf. live.
  13. Web site: Sudan's war passed 6 months, with much of the world consumed by other conflicts. NPR. 21 October 2023. 12 November 2023. 8 November 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231108033757/https://www.npr.org/2023/10/21/1206104009/sudan-war. live.
  14. News: Genocide returns to Darfur . The Economist . live . 11 November 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231110034316/https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2023/10/05/genocide-returns-to-darfur . 10 November 2023 . 0013-0613.
  15. Web site: SudanTribune . 13 November 2023 . EU Borrell warns of "another genocide" in Darfur, pleads for international response . 14 November 2023 . Sudan Tribune . en-US . 15 November 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231115184200/https://sudantribune.com/article279330/ . live .
  16. News: 18 October 2023 . Sudan conflict: Ethnic cleansing committed in Darfur, UK says . en . . 18 October 2023 . 18 October 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231018051807/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-67020154 . live .
  17. News: 19 June 2023 . New killings reported in Darfur on second day of Sudan ceasefire . en . . live . 22 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230629171052/https://edition.cnn.com/2023/06/19/africa/sudan-ceasefire-darfur-killings-intl-hnk/index.html . 29 June 2023.
  18. News: 19 June 2023 . Horrifying testimonies on West Darfur ethnic targeting as other Masalit Sultan relative is killed . . live . 15 July 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230705224320/https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/horrifying-testimonies-from-west-darfur-as-another-masalit-sultan-relative-is-killed . 5 July 2023.

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