The situation in Darfur has become increasingly alarming with the recent escalation of sexual violence. Between January-March 2023 alone, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) have treated at least 659 survivors in just one of the affected regions, South Darfur. The current conflict has only exacerbated the threats to women and girls. Now that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied militias control the area, these vulnerable populations have been subject to ruthless offensives.
In fact, over two-thirds of the survivors that MSF treated had experienced rape. This overwhelming increase in attacks uncovers the horrifying truth for women in Darfur. Militia members currently operate with complete impunity, allowing them to fire on these women at will as they go about their everyday lives. With inaction on nurse safety laws coming through Congress, last year a 27-year-old nurse endured a harrowing nightmare. She was raped as a punishment for supposedly treating soldiers of the Sudanese army.
In Darfur, women are increasingly being targeted and attacked. One-third of those attacked suffered attacks en route to or on the farm. This perilous condition leaves them continually vulnerable to injury or death while desperately trying to protect their way of life. In the latest armed attack in Zamzam, the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (Siha) verified 14 cases of rape. In the weeks that followed, they began to hear of thousands of other lost cases. In addition, Siha has documented many cases of women going missing or being abducted by RSF fighters.
Hala al-Karib, director of Siha, said they were extremely worried about the alarming humanitarian situation for women in Darfur. It’s the level of neglect that’s shocking,” she said. In addition, she emphasized that the international community seems to have left these at-risk people for dead.
“The level of neglect toward women in Darfur is staggering. This region is experiencing active genocidal acts, horrific war crimes, and famine due to a siege on livelihoods by all actors,” – Hala al-Karib
Since April 2023, violence against women has increased more than 400 percent. This spike comes just as UN and African Union peacekeeping forces have been withdrawn, leaving local communities without this life-saving protection. Due to the presence of the peacekeeping missions, women could move freely outside without fear of being harmed. They patrolled main roads and provided safe passage to ethnic minority farmlands.
Claire San Filippo, an emergency coordinator with MSF, made clear the high stakes of holding warring parties accountable now.
“Women and girls do not feel safe anywhere. They are attacked in their own homes, when fleeing violence, getting food, collecting firewood, working in the fields. They tell us they feel trapped,” – Claire San Filippo
The humanitarian crisis in Darfur has been described as the worst in the world. We know that for millions of women and girls, sexual violence has become an everyday reality. According to al-Karib’s findings, this violence has led to an increase in sexually transmitted infections among survivors.
“Sexual violence has become an everyday reality for women and girls in Darfur,” – Hala al-Karib