War decimates harvest in famine-threatened Sudan/node/2577838/middle-east
War decimates harvest in famine-threatened Sudan
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Sudanese people fleeing the al-Jazira state settle at an area near the eastern city of Gedaref on Nov. 2, 2024. At least 124 people have been killed and dozens wounded in the fighting in the eastern al-Jazira state over the past 10 days, according to the United Nations. (AFP)
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Sudanese people fleeing the al-Jazira state settle at an area near the eastern city of Gedaref on Nov. 2, 2024. At least 124 people have been killed and dozens wounded in the fighting in the eastern al-Jazira state over the past 10 days, according to the United Nations. (AFP)
Hundreds of farmers have been driven off their once-fertile lands and those who have managed to remain face tremendous hardships
Warring sides accused of using “starvation tactics” against 25 million civilians and aid groups warned that families are resorting to eating leaves and insects
Updated 03 November 2024
AFP
GEDAREF, Sudan: Ahmed Othman’s farm has been spared from the deadly fighting that has spread across Sudan, but the war’s toll on the economy and labor market has still reached him.
“I had to sell two vehicles” to afford to harvest this season’s crops, he told AFP from his large sesame farm in eastern Sudan’s Gedaref state.
A year and a half of war in Sudan between the army and paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has triggered one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises and devastated harvests.
Last month, United Nations experts accused the warring sides of using “starvation tactics” against 25 million civilians, and three major aid organizations warned of a “historic” hunger crisis as families resort to eating leaves and insects.
Hundreds of farmers have been driven off their once-fertile lands and those who have managed to remain face tremendous hardships.
Gedaref state is key to Sudan’s corn production, a crucial crop for a population the World Food Programme warns is nearing famine — a condition already declared at a displacement camp in the country’s western region of Darfur.
“The first challenge we faced was securing funding as banks are experiencing a cash crunch due to the war,” said Othman.
Cash shortages have occurred even in army-controlled Gedaref since the RSF took over the capital Khartoum and banks were ransacked.
The farmer said that without selling two out of his three vehicles he could not have afforded fuel for farm machinery or to pay workers to prepare the fields and tend to the crops.
“The second problem is the scarcity of farm workers due to the war, which has limited their movement across states,” he added.
Most workers in Gedaref previously came from the adjacent states of Blue Nile and Sennar, as well as from Kordofan further away.
However, the war has restricted inter-state movement, leaving farm owners like Othman with only a small workforce.
Another local farmer, Suleiman Mohamed, said “the shortage of workers has driven up wages, so we are relying on those already in the area, mainly Ethiopians” who have long resided in Sudan’s east as refugees.
War began in April 2023 between the army under the country’s de facto ruler Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan and the RSF, led by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.
Disruptions to the harvest this season could exacerbate the hunger crisis, made worse by restrictions on aid entry.
European and North American nations issued a joint statement last month that accused the warring sides of “systematic obstruction” of aid efforts. They said both sides should urgently admit the assistance to millions of people in dire need.
In southern Gedaref, another farmer, Othman Abdelkarim, said many have already given up on this year’s season.
“Most of us have relied on ourselves for financing, and some simply opted out and didn’t plant,” he said, pointing to an unplanted field west of his farm.
“This crisis will delay the harvest and affect its quality,” he added.
The state’s agriculture ministry reported that nine million acres (3.6 million hectares) were cultivated in Gedaref this year — five million with corn and the rest with sesame, sunflowers, peanuts and cotton.
That is less than half of the roughly 20 million acres planted annually before the war.
Farmer Suleiman Mohamed fears there is no hope for this season’s crop.
“With fewer workers and delayed harvesting, we’ll face losses, and part of the crop will be lost,” he said from his farm in eastern Gedaref.
Top Hamas official says Gaza truce talks no longer of interest
A senior Hamas official said Tuesday the group was no longer interested in truce talks with Israel and urged the international community to halt Israel’s “hunger war” against Gaza
Updated 36 min 56 sec ago
AFP
GAZA: A senior Hamas official said Tuesday the group was no longer interested in truce talks with Israel and urged the international community to halt Israel's "hunger war" against Gaza.
"There is no sense in engaging in talks or considering new ceasefire proposals as long as the hunger war and extermination war continue in the Gaza Strip," Basem Naim told AFP.
He said the world must pressure the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the "crimes of hunger, thirst, and killings" in Gaza.
The comments by Naim, a Hamas political bureau member and former Gaza health minister, come a day after Israel's military said expanded operations in Gaza would include displacing "most" of its residents.
On Monday Israel's security cabinet approved the military's plan for expanded operations, which an Israeli official said would entail "the conquest of the Gaza Strip and the holding of the territories".
Nearly all of the territory's residents inhabitants have been displaced, often multiple times, since the start of the war sparked by Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
Gaza has been under total Israeli blockade since March 2 and faces a severe humanitarian crisis.
Israel's military resumed its offensive on the Gaza Strip on March 18, ending a two-month truce.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot in a radio interview on Tuesday called Israel's plan for a Gaza offensive "unacceptable", and said its government was "in violation of humanitarian law".
Sudan’s paramilitary unleashes drones on key targets in Port Sudan
The barrage was the second such attack this week on a city that had been a hub for people fleeing Sudan’s two-year war
Local media reported loud sound of explosions and fires at the port and the airport
Updated 38 min 16 sec ago
AP
CAIRO: Sudan’s paramilitary unleashed drones on the Red Sea city of Port Sudan early Tuesday, hitting key targets there, including the airport, the port and a hotel, military officials said. The barrage was the second such attack this week on a city that had been a hub for people fleeing Sudan’s two-year war.
There was no immediate word on any casualties or the extent of the damage. Local media reported loud sound of explosions and fires at the port and the airport. Footage circulating online showed thick smoke rising over the area.
The attack on Port Sudan, which also serves as an interim seat for Sudan’s military-allied government, underscores that after two years of fighting, the military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are still capable of threatening each other’s territory.
The RSF drones struck early in the morning, said two Sudanese military officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.
Abdel-Rahman Al-Nour, a Port Sudan resident, said he woke up to strong explosions, and saw fires and plumes of black smoke rising over the port. Msha’ashir Ahmed, a local journalist living in Port Sudan, said fires were still burning late Tuesday morning in the southern vicinity of the maritime port.
The attack apparently disrupted air traffic at the airport, with Cairo airport data in neighboring Egypt showing that three Port Sudan-bound flights were canceled on Tuesday.
The RSF did not release any statements on the attack. On Sunday, the paramilitary force struck Port Sudan for the first time in the war, disrupting air traffic in the city’s airport, which has been the main entry point for the county in the last two years.
A military ammunition warehouse in the Othman Daqna air base in the city was also hit, setting off a fire that burned for two days.
When the fighting in Sudan broke out, the focus of the battles initially was the country’s capital, Khartoum, which turned into a war zone. Withing weeks, Port Sudan, about 800 kilometers (500 miles) to the east of Khartoum, turned into a safe haven for the displaced and those fleeing the war. Many aid missions and UN agencies moved their offices there.
The attacks on Port Sudan are also seen as retaliation after the Sudanese military earlier this month struck the Nyala airport in South Darfur, which the paramilitary RSF has turned into a base and where it gets shipments of arms, including drones.
Sudan plunged into chaos in April 2023, when simmering tensions between the military and the RSF exploded into open warfare in Khartoum. From there, the fighting spread to other parts of the country.
Since then, at least 24,000 people have been killed, though the number is likely far higher. The war has driven about 13 million people from their homes, including four million crossed into neighboring countries. It also pushed parts of the country into famine.
The fighting has been marked by atrocities including mass rape and ethnically motivated killings that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, especially in the western Darfur region, according to the United Natios. and international rights groups.
Sharaa in February received an invitation from French President Emmanuel Macron to visit France in the ‘coming weeks’
Updated 06 May 2025
Reuters
Syria’s President Ahmed Al-Sharaa is expected to visit France soon, a statement by the Syrian president’s office said, without specifying a date.
Sharaa in February received an invitation from French President Emmanuel Macron to visit France in the “coming weeks.”
Trump, asked about Israel’s Gaza plans, says US will help on food
UN and aid organizations have warned of the humanitarian catastrophe on the ground, with famine again looming after two months of Israeli blockade
Updated 05 May 2025
Reuters
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump repeated a US pledge to help get food to Palestinians in Gaza when he was asked at the White House on Monday about Israeli plans for an expanded offensive in the territory.
Trump did not offer his views on Israel’s operations. He made the comments to reporters in the Oval Office.
Israel’s security cabinet approved the expansion of military operations in Gaza including the “conquest” of the Palestinian territory, an official said Monday, after the army called up tens of thousands of reservists for the offensive.
It comes as the United Nations and aid organizations have repeatedly warned of the humanitarian catastrophe on the ground, with famine again looming after more than two months of a total Israeli blockade.
The Israeli official said the expanded operations “will include, among other things, the conquest of the Gaza Strip and the holding of the territories, moving the Gaza population south for their protection.”
A different senior security official said “a central component of the plan is a large-scale evacuation of the entire Gazan population from the fighting zones... to areas in southern Gaza.”
The plan, approved by the cabinet overnight, comes amid a push by Israel for Palestinians to leave the territory.
A “voluntary transfer program for Gaza residents... will be part of the operation’s goals,” the senior security official added.
The European Union voiced concern and urged restraint from Israel, saying the plan “will result in further casualties and suffering for the Palestinian people.”
Israel resumed major operations across Gaza on March 18 amid deadlock over how to proceed with a two-month ceasefire that had largely halted the war with Hamas, which was sparked by the militants’ October 2023 attack.
Israel has since carried out intensive aerial bombardments and expanded ground operations across the Palestinian territory.
Gaza rescuers on Monday said Israeli air strikes killed at least 19 people.
How Syria can overcome sectarian unrest to rebuild trust and national unity
A mosaic of faiths and ethnicities, Syria is grappling with violence that is putting transitional government to the test
Syrian observers and experts urge the authorities to engage meaningfully with minorities to promote national healing
Updated 05 May 2025
ANAN TELLO
LONDON: In the Damascus suburb of Ashrafiyat Sahnaya, the sounds of prayer bells and muezzins used to blend peacefully into the rhythm of daily life. Here, families from Syria’s diverse communities — Sunni, Druze, Christian, and Alawite — shared neighbors’ bread and exchanged Eid and Christmas greetings with equal sincerity. But that culture of mutual respect, already strained by more than a decade of civil war, is now on the brink of disappearing altogether.
A small audio clip uploaded online in late April was all it took to set off a chain of disruptive events. Within days, Syria’s fragile social compact broke down in places thought to be stable. Violent clashes erupted between armed groups and civilians. Security forces, once seen as protectors in these moments of tension, were either absent or accused of collusion. Entire neighborhoods were transformed into battlefields.
For observers of Syria’s long and bloodied path since 2011, the resurgence of sectarian strife in recent months is a warning less about the past than about the road ahead. With a transitional government led by President Ahmad Al-Sharaa trying to navigate a volatile political landscape, and with major world powers distracted by other crises, some of Syria’s minorities are wondering where they belong in the nation’s future.
Druze clerics and relatives carry coffins of members of the Syrian minority who were killed in recent sectarian clashes. (AFP)
The message of these regional analysts can be summed up thus: The Syrian government must be willing to listen to its citizens and open the door to political change — not military solutions or rule by militias. It must embrace and engage the country’s diverse ethnic and religious communities and commit to political inclusion.
The latest wave of unrest began on April 26 when the audio clip — whose authenticity remains unverified — circulated across messaging platforms. The man accused of criticizing Prophet Muhammad in the voice recording was Marwan Kiwan, a respected Druze scholar known for his initiatives in interfaith dialogue. Kiwan quickly issued a video denial, saying: “Whoever made this is evil and wants to incite strife between components of the Syrian people.” His words did little to contain the rage.
The Druze, a small religious community that makes up about 3 percent of Syria’s population, have long walked a delicate line between asserting autonomy and pledging loyalty to the state. But by April 28, fighting had broken out in Jaramana and Ashrafiyat Sahnaya — suburbs once considered models of coexistence — between militants and local Druze groups.
INNUMBER
• 50% Minorities (Alawites, Kurds, Druze and others) as a fraction of Syria’s population.
• 60% Fraction of the population who were food insecure in 2021.
• $100bn Real GDP (purchasing power parity) of Syria in 2022.
Source: CIA’s The World Factbook
The violence quickly spread south, to villages in Suweida — Syria’s Druze heartland — such as Ira, Rasas and Al-Soura Al-Kubra. At least 100 people were killed over the course of a week. Mortar shelling and heavy machine-gun fire struck residential areas. On Thursday, Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hajari condemned the violence as an “unjustifiable genocidal campaign” against his community. He called for international intervention to help restore peace. By Friday, May 2, at least 100 people, including civilians, were reportedly dead.
Other Druze religious figures took a more conciliatory tone. In a joint statement, they affirmed the community’s “commitment to a country that includes all Syrians, a nation that is free of strife,” the Associated Press news agency reported. They also urged the government to secure the vital Suweida-Damascus highway, a critical lifeline increasingly targeted by militants.
Christian and Muslim clerics attend the funeral of members of Syria’s Druze community who were killed in recent sectarian clashes. (AFP)
The authorities issued statements blaming the violence on “outlaw groups,” while local activists and human rights monitors accused pro-government militias of targeting Druze neighborhoods.
Amid the chaos, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that his government had carried out airstrikes near the presidential palace in Damascus on May 2 to “send a message” following the attacks on Syria’s Druze population. For many Syrians, this only added to the confusion — and to the perception that sectarian politics had become a tool for foreign manipulation.
Joshua Landis, director of the Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Oklahoma, dismissed Israel’s posturing. “Israel has threatened the regime of Al-Sharaa by landing a few warning bombs, but it cannot protect the Druze,” he told Arab News. Worse, he added, the overtures could backfire. “Israel’s intervention on behalf of the Druze compromises them in the minds of many Syrians, who now accuse them of treason.”
Ghassan Ibrahim, founder of the Global Arab Network, went further in his criticism of Israel’s role. “Israel doesn’t care about the Syrian Druze,” he said. “It focuses on the Druze within its borders and projects a false message that it wants to help the community in Syria, rather than offering meaningful support.”
In a statement on Friday, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria said continued Israeli airstrikes could cause greater civilian harm and fragmentation.
Members of Syria’s security deploy at the entrance of Jaramana near Damascus. (AFP)
While the situation “remains fluid,” it noted that a tentative agreement had reportedly been reached between leaders in Suweida and authorities in Damascus. Still, it stressed the government’s obligation to protect all civilians within its jurisdiction.
The commission also pointed to earlier violence in Syria’s coastal areas in March as evidence of the country’s fragile security and the urgent need for de-escalation.
Regional analysts echoed the commission’s concerns, warning that foreign interference and deepening internal divisions jeopardize chances of long-term peace. Many urged the government to double down on reconciliation and called on the international community to support inclusive, Syrian-led solutions.
For Ibrahim, the true path to peace lies not in foreign intervention but in inclusive, homegrown governance. “The less negative external involvement we have, the better it is for Syrians to sit down and talk,” he said. “That process still requires support, including engagement with the UN and other organizations, to help Syrians find a path toward political compromise.”
He emphasized that stabilizing the country requires sidelining armed groups and initiating a credible national dialogue. “This needs support from Arab states, neighboring countries, the international community — and even Israel, which must halt its involvement in the conflict,” he told Arab News.
Ibrahim urged the new government to break with extremist allies and pursue political reform. “The Syrian government must be willing to listen to its citizens and open the door to political change — not military solutions or rule by militias,” he said. “It must reach out to minorities and embrace Syria’s diverse ethnic and religious fabric.”
Members of Syria’s security forces deploy in an area near the Syrian capital Damascus. (AFP)
He also called on the government to engage with Syria’s diverse ethnic and religious communities and commit to political inclusion. “Syria has always been home to different communities, and it must remain that way,” he said, stressing that a more inclusive approach could “unlock reconstruction aid, ease sanctions, and rebuild trust in state institutions.”
Such measures, according to Ibrahim, would not only incentivize reform but also reassure minorities that the international community remains committed to their protection.
“Western governments would prefer a Syria that aligns with the West rather than fall under extremist influence again,” he said. “At the moment, it doesn’t appear that global powers are paying much attention to Syria — there is no real road map, guidance or incentives being offered. Syria today is being treated like Afghanistan after the withdrawal from Kabul — largely abandoned.”
Landis, the US academic, believes Western leverage over Syria remains limited. “The only leverage that the West has is sanctions, which are a double-edged sword; they hurt the people even more than the government,” he said.
Though many sanctions were eased in 2025, the US State Department reiterated in April that any further relief would require a verifiable crackdown on terrorism, disarmament of chemical weapons, and the protection of minorities.
Members of Syria’s Druze community chant slogans in Damascus during the funeral of people killed during clashes with Syrian security forces. (AFP)
Landis blamed the government for not hesitating “to call for a general mobilization to send irresponsible militias to go kill Alawites on the coast, where some 1,700, mostly unarmed civilians, were murdered,” adding: “Now, the Defense (Ministry) Forces have attacked the Druze, with no serious effort to stop the mobilization against them.”
Within Syria’s civil society, some analysts believe small, symbolic actions could yet help ensure accountability and rebuild trust. Karam Shaar, a senior fellow at the Newlines Institute for Strategy and Policy, pointed to one viral video in which an armed fighter is seen forcibly shaving a Druze man’s moustache — an act widely viewed as a cultural insult.
“A gesture as simple as identifying that individual, ensuring they apologize publicly, and bringing them before a court could send a powerful message,” he said. “These symbolic steps matter.”
He noted that various actors had committed abuses, including attacks on government security personnel. “That’s completely unacceptable,” he told Arab News.
According to Shaar, the broader goal should be to foster a sense of equal protection under the law for all Syrians. “That feeling has not been consistently present,” he said, emphasizing that the state “sets the tone for justice and accountability.”
The Druze have long walked a delicate line between asserting autonomy and pledging loyalty to the state. (AFP)
Camille Otrakji, a Syrian analyst and longtime observer of the regime’s internal dynamics, believes the government is caught between contradictory pressures. “A significant gap — in values, priorities, and trust — persists between the government’s conservative base and a broader segment of Syrians, including ethnic and religious minorities as well as many Arabs, who favor a more inclusive and less ideological vision for the country,” he said.
Otrakji said while the government had acted to contain sectarian tensions, “the recurring unrest has deepened doubts — both inside Syria and abroad — about the government’s ability to maintain a stable and inclusive order.”
According to him, both sides of the political divide — government and opposition — are lobbying Western powers, with the regime portraying itself as a stabilizing force and its critics warning of ideological extremism within the ruling bloc.
“For Western policymakers, the path forward remains deeply uncertain,” he told Arab News. “Some argue that, however imperfect, the Al-Sharaa government represents the only viable vehicle for preserving a measure of stability in post-Assad Syria.
“Others see in the current leadership signs of deeper fragmentation and are preparing for the possibility of yet another period of disruptive — and potentially violent — transition.”
The resurgence of sectarian strife in recent months is a warning less about the past than about the road ahead. (AFP)
History has shown that sectarian wounds, once opened, do not heal easily. Iraq and Lebanon offer cautionary tales of what happens when multi-ethnic societies are left to drift without strong civic foundations. Syria’s challenge is arguably greater: It must not only contain current unrest but also address the grievances of millions of citizens displaced, detained or bereaved over five decades of Assad dynasty rule.
Syria has historically been a place where multiple religions and cultures coexisted — not always perfectly, but with dignity. That memory is still alive in millions of Syrian hearts. Unsurprisingly, many voices are emerging, calling for a tolerant vision that goes beyond sect or party. It is a vision rooted in Syria’s pluralistic past and projected into an as yet unknown future.