Ten months into Sudan’s war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the conflict continues to exact untold suffering on the Sudanese people, particularly in Darfur, as the global community turns its eyes away. In late January, the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor, Karim Khan, warned that the heinous crimes committed in Darfur risk becoming “the forgotten atrocity.”
To date, the RSF and its allies have killed thousands and displaced hundreds of thousands in a campaign to systematically target non-Arab communities and force demographic change in Darfur, utterly destroying entire cities and towns as well as necessary infrastructure in the process. While the ICC’s investigation in Darfur is an important first step toward accountability, global powers have overwhelmingly failed to prevent atrocities which are ongoing in Darfur, hold perpetrators to account, or bring an end to the war, and the voices of Darfur’s survivors and local advocates have been largely absent from international processes.
On Thursday, February 22, 2024, the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP) hosted a virtual discussion with TIMEP Nonresident Fellow Mohamed Osman, Niemat Ahmadi (DWAG), and Quscondy Abdulshafi (Freedom House), and moderated by Kholood Khair (Confluence Advisory). Panelists examined questions such as: How can the global community urgently take action to protect civilians in Darfur, prevent further atrocities, and facilitate meaningful accountability, both in Darfur and more broadly for abuses across the country? What are the most urgent humanitarian needs on the ground right now? What regional and international mechanisms and tools should be leveraged to bring about an immediate end to the war?
Mohamed Osman
Nonresident Fellow, The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP)Mohamed Osman is a Nonresident Fellow at TIMEP focusing on governance, accountability, and justice in Sudan. He has been a Researcher in Human Rights Watch’s Africa Division since 2018. Previously, Mohamed worked with the Open Society Justice Initiative in New York as an Aryeh Neier Fellow working on corruption and advocacy. He started his career as a practicing lawyer in Sudan before working as a legal adviser to Redress and Sudan Human Rights Monitor on torture and ill-treatment project. He has also worked as the legal adviser for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegation in Sudan, responsible for International Humanitarian Law dissemination among officials and arms carriers. Mohamed obtained a law degree and a postgraduate diploma on human rights law from the University of Khartoum. He has a master’s degree from the University of Essex on International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law.
Niemat Ahmadi
Founder and President of the Darfur Women Action GroupNiemat Ahmadi is the Founder and President of Darfur Women Action Group and the Founder and CEO of Unique22 LLC Strategies. She is a veteran human rights and genocide prevention advocate and a seasoned strategic planning & management professional and is currently a member of the International Strategic Planning Association and the Excellence in Government team member. Ms. Ahmadi has a long track record working with international non-governmental organizations for over 23 years in various fields of emergency, development, and policy advocacy in Sudan and internationally. Ms. Ahmadi previously worked as the Director of Global Partnerships for United to End Genocide and the Save Darfur Coalition in the US and with Oxfam Great Britain, Intermediate Technology Development Group (now known as Practical Action) and the United Nation’s World Food Programme in Sudan. She served as a gender advisor at the 7th round of Inter-Sudanese peace talks on Darfur in Abuja, Nigeria. Ms. Ahmadi has provided expert testimonies at prestigious policy forums, including the United Nations Security Council, United Nations Human Rights Council, Assembly of the States Parties to the International Criminal Court, Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and the International Criminal Court. She has numerous media appearance and served as speaker at hundreds of international conferences organized on the subject matter of genocide/atrocities prevention, gender equality, human rights, Women Peace and Security and accountability for serious international crimes and conflict resolution.
Quscondy Abdulshafi
Senior Regional Advisor – Africa, Freedom HouseQuscondy Abdulshafi is the Senior Regional Advisor for Africa at Freedom House. He holds dual masters in Sustainable International Development and Coexistence and Conflict Resolution at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. He holds a BA in Development Studies from Kampala International University, Uganda, and a Diploma in Philosophy from the University of Khartoum, Sudan. He’s a native Arabic and Fur speaker, fluent in English and speaks Amharic. Mr. Abdulshafi received the Civil Society Leadership Award from Open Society Foundation in 2018, in recognition of his activism and leadership in Sudan civil society sector.
Kholood Khair
Founding Director, Confluence AdvisoryKholood Khair is the founding director of Confluence Advisory, a think and do tank in Khartoum that works on governance, peace and security, and the economy. Kholood also hosts and co-produces Spotlight 249, Sudan’s first English language political discussion and debate show aimed at Sudanese youth. Kholood has over a decade’s experience in research, aid programming, and policy in Sudan and across the Horn of Africa. She has also written analysis pieces for several international publications and has provided analyses for different research and policy institutions. Kholood holds and MSc from Oxford University and an MSc from the School of Oriental and African Studies.