World
World forgets ‘catastrophic’ war in Sudan as Russia, Iran, others reportedly feed fighting with arms
JOHANNESBURG — With the United Nations saying that up to 10 million people have been displaced and U.S. sources claiming up to 150,000 killed and some five million facing famine in a devastating year-long conflict between government and rebel forces, Sudan has been ripped apart.
But observers say it is a forgotten war.
“Sudanese (people) are asking why the world turns a blind eye as the third-largest country in Africa is laid to waste while at the same time fixating on the smaller conflict in Gaza,” Hadeel Oueis, editor-in-chief of the pan-Arab media outlet Jusoor, told Fox News Digital.
“There is no extensive media coverage, and nobody cares about what’s happening here,” Abu Muhammad, a businessman in Sudan, told the Center for Peace Communications (CPC). “The little attention we attract fades away immediately. It’s the opposite of what is happening in Gaza. All the media channels are about is Gaza, Gaza and Gaza.”
With the aid agency Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) estimating that 25 million people – half the country’s population – needing humanitarian assistance, the organization’s president, Christos Christou, said in April that the situation is not acceptable and “this level of international neglect is shocking.”
GENOCIDE, FAMINE IN SUDAN AS BIDEN ADMIN ACCUSED OF BEING ‘IDLE’
Sudanese refugees are shown in the Awlala refugee camp in Ethiopia on May 31, 2024. (Alfatih Alsemari/Handout via Reuters)
On the ground in Sudan, student Muhammad Khalid told CPC, “The media makes decisions based on ratings, so it focuses on the world’s hot-button issues.”
“The media’s focus is on other issues like the war in Ukraine or Palestine. As to Sudan, problems in African society are seen as tiresome for Europeans and Middle Easterners. No one wants to watch it anymore.”
In the Zamzam refugee camp in Sudan’s North Darfur, the MSF recently stated that around 75 people are dying of malnutrition and disease every day. A State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital, “Five million people in Sudan are on the brink of famine. We demand all parties immediately remove all obstructions to humanitarian assistance and enable full, rapid, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access, including cross-border and cross-line.”
Each dawn brings more misery for the ordinary people of Sudan, and “They face what could be described as a double tragedy,” Sudanese analyst Hamid Fathi told CPC. “First, these people fled from Khartoum to Gezira. Then they were forced out of Gezira and its capital, Wad Madani, and had to flee east when the Rapid Support Forces (rebel forces, the RSF) took control of the area. There is no extensive media coverage, and nobody cares about what’s happening here.”
Fighters of the Sudan Liberation Movement, a Sudanese rebel group active in Sudan’s Darfur state, attend a graduation ceremony in Gedaref on March 28, 2024. (AFP via Getty Images)
Oueis told Fox News Digital that the people of Sudan “wish the world’s great powers would respond to the magnitude of humanitarian tragedy, which the war in Sudan has caused, or at least recognize the high geopolitical stakes.”
“Iran and its Russian and Chinese allies are determined to dominate Sudan and will undoubtedly succeed if the U.S. and Europe stay on the sidelines,” Oueis continued.
WORLD, PROTESTERS SILENT ON SUDAN MASSACRES: ‘NO MOB OUTSIDE THE WHITE HOUSE’
A wounded man lies in a Doctors Without Borders hospital where refugees are receiving treatment after fleeing ethnic violence in Ardamata, West Darfur, in the border town of Adre, Chad, on Nov. 10, 2023. (Reuters/El Tayeb Siddig)
Cameron Hudson, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, agreed and said, “The longer the conflict goes on, the more determinative external players become.” Hudson, director of African affairs in the National Security Council for the George W. Bush administration, told Fox News Digital that “after a year of fighting, both sides are now heavily dependent on outside support and resupply. The UAE has been the principal backer of the RSF from the start. Recently, Sudan’s army has begun receiving aid from Iran, and in the last week announced a deal with Russia to allow them a refueling port on the Red Sea in exchange for undisclosed weapons transfers.”
“The crisis in Sudan, including the ongoing genocide in Darfur, is a human catastrophe,” Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told Fox News Digital. “President Biden has the power to highlight and influence this tragedy, but he remains silent.”
“Despite Congress and the Sudanese people’s desperate pleas for more action, the Biden Administration offers only empty statements and commitments and no real accountability,” Risch continued.
Smoke is seen in Khartoum, Sudan, on April 19, 2023. Warring factions trying to seize control of the East African nation have plunged the country into chaos. (AP Photo/Marwan Ali)
In February, the State Department announced the appointment of Tom Periello as special envoy to Sudan. But Risch is dismissive.
“Even the U.S. envoy, who has an opportunity to offer greater U.S. leadership on Sudan, suffers from the same ineptitude and political indifference that has characterized this administration since the war’s outset,” he said.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently phoned Sudanese Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the country’s de facto ruler, and called on him to “urgently end the conflict in Sudan.”
Hudson told Fox News Digital that “prior to Secretary Blinken’s call, it was more than a year since Blinken had spoken with him. Blinken parachuting in at the 11th hour has had little effect, other than to demonstrate just how little leverage the U.S. has remaining over the parties.”
“The U.S. should have been using its leverage over countries like the UAE to suspend their support for this war,” Hudson added. “And it should have been encouraging other closer allies of the U.S. who are inclined to support Sudan’s army, like Turkey or Egypt, to do so. Instead, the army has turned to Russia and Iran as suppliers of last resort and over whom the U.S. has no direct leverage.”
US TO PULL TROOPS FROM CHAD, NIGER AS THE AFRICAN NATIONS QUESTION ITS COUNTERTERRORISM ROLE
Families escaping Ardamata in West Darfur cross into Adre, Chad, after a wave of ethnic violence on Nov. 7, 2023. Survivors recounted executions and looting in Ardamata, which they said were carried out by RSF and allied Arab militias. (Reuters/El Tayeb Siddig )
A State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement that “the Administration is working, alongside our international partners, to achieve an end to the conflict, meet humanitarian needs and support a return to a democratic transition.”
“We are pressing the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to engage in direct ceasefire negotiations; immediately end the fighting; adhere to their obligations under international humanitarian law and human rights law; and take immediate steps to improve humanitarian access to meet the emergency needs of civilians.”
Analysts say gold from Sudan’s mines and geopolitical influence are the main reasons external players have become involved in the conflict. The State Department spokesperson said Sudan’s warring parties are “turning to external actors seeking to take advantage of Sudan’s fragile state and resources, deepening the suffering of the Sudanese people.”
Sudanese army fighters are shown in Karima on May 19, 2024. Sudan has been in the throes of conflict for more than a year between the regular army led by de facto ruler Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF led by his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. (AFP via Getty Images)
“The United States opposes external interference to support the belligerents in the Sudan conflict; it will only exacerbate and prolong the conflict and risks further spreading regional instability.”
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield singled out the UAE when talking to reporters in April about the conflict in Sudan, saying, “We do know that both sides are receiving support, both with weapons and other support to fuel their efforts to continue to destroy Sudan. And yes, we have engaged with parties on that, including with our colleagues from the UAE.”
But a UAE government official, presented with the ambassador’s comments, told Fox News Digital that “the UAE strongly rejects these false claims and categorically denies the provision of any military, logistical, financial or political support to any faction in Sudan.”
The official continued, “Sudanese allegations pertaining to the UAE taking sides or supporting one side over the other appear to be nothing more than an attempt to divert attention from the ongoing conflict and the deteriorating humanitarian situation.”
Global energy markets remain in a state of high alert after several Gulf states suspended oil and gas production following escalating tensions in the region.
Since Saturday’s attacks by the United States and Israel, Tehran has targeted various sites in Israel and across several Gulf countries.
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Initially, these Iranian attacks focused primarily on US military assets, but Gulf states have reported that Iran has since broadened its scope to target civilian infrastructure, including hotels, airports and energy facilities. Iranian officials have publicly denied targeting Gulf energy facilities, however.
The Middle East remains the world’s dominant source of hydrocarbon reserves and a major driver of crude oil and natural gas output.
How much oil and gas does the Middle East have?
Nearly half of the world’s oil reserves and exports come from the Middle East, which contains five of the seven largest oil reserves in the world.
Once refined, crude oil is used to make various products, including petrol, diesel, jet fuel and a wide range of household items such as cleaning products, plastics and even lotions.
After Venezuela, which has 303 billion barrels, Saudi Arabia holds the world’s second-largest proven crude oil reserves, estimated at 267 billion barrels.
The Middle East’s largest oil reserves:
- Saudi Arabia: 267 billion barrels
- Iran: 209 billion barrels
- Iraq: 145 billion barrels
- UAE: 113 billion barrels
- Kuwait: 102 billion barrels
Saudi Arabia is also the world’s top oil exporter with an estimated $187bn of crude in 2024, according to data from the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC).
The Middle East’s top oil exporters:
- Saudi Arabia: $187bn
- UAE: $114bn
- Iraq: $98bn
- Iran: $47bn – largely sold at a discount due to US sanctions
- Kuwait: 29bn
Other Middle Eastern countries with sizeable oil exports include: Oman ($28.9bn), Kuwait ($28.8bn) and Qatar ($21bn).
In addition to crude oil, the Middle East is a global powerhouse for natural gas, accounting for nearly 18 percent of global production and approximately 40 percent of the world’s proven reserves.
Natural gas is primarily used for electricity generation, industrial heating, and in chemicals and fertilisers.
The heart of Middle Eastern gas is a single, massive underwater reservoir called the South Pars/North Dome field. It is the largest gasfield in the world, and it is shared directly between Qatar and Iran.
Gas is transported either through pipelines or by tankers. When using pipelines, the gas is pressurised and moved through steel networks. When pipelines are not feasible, such as across oceans, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) is used.
To create LNG, the gas is cooled to approximately -162C (-260F), shrinking its volume and allowing it to be safely loaded onto specialised tanker ships for global transport.
To transport oil and gas, tankers from various Gulf states must navigate the narrow waterway known as the Strait of Hormuz. Approximately one-fifth of global oil and gas passes through this strait, primarily heading to major markets in Asia, including China, Japan, South Korea and India, as well as to Europe.
Which energy facilities have been attacked?
Here are the facilities which have recorded damage as of Wednesday:
Saudi Arabia – Ras Tanura oil refinery
On Monday, one of the world’s largest oil refining complexes, the Ras Tanura oil refinery owned by Saudi Aramco, was forced to halt operations after debris from intercepted Iranian drones caused a small fire.
Saudi Aramco is one of the world’s largest companies, with a market capitalisation exceeding $1.7 trillion and revenue of $480bn. Headquartered in Dhahran, in eastern Saudi Arabia, Aramco controls 12 percent of global oil production, with a capacity of more than 12 million barrels per day (bpd).
On Wednesday, Saudi defence officials reported a second drone attempt on the facility but this was successfully intercepted with no damage or disruption to operations reported.
Qatar – Ras Laffan Industrial City LNG facilities
On Monday, Qatar’s Ministry of Defence reported that Iranian drones had targeted an energy facility in Ras Laffan belonging to QatarEnergy, the world’s largest LNG producer.
While no casualties were reported, QatarEnergy suspended the production of LNG and other products at the impacted sites.
QatarEnergy’s 81 million metric tonnes of LNG exports are mostly bound for Asian markets, including China, Japan, India, South Korea, Pakistan and other countries in the region. The halt in production hiked global gas prices to a three-year high this week.
Qatar – Mesaieed Industrial City
Qatar’s Defence Ministry said the country was attacked by a second drone launched from Iran on Monday, targeting a water tank belonging to a power plant in Mesaieed, without reporting any casualties.
On Tuesday, QatarEnergy also stopped production of some downstream products like urea, polymers, methanol, aluminium and others.
UAE – Fujairah and Mussafah oil terminals
On Monday, a fire broke out at Mussafah Fuel Terminal in southwest Abu Dhabi after it was struck by a drone.
On Tuesday, falling debris from a drone interception caused a fire at the Fujairah Oil Terminal along the eastern coast of the United Arab Emirates. No injuries were reported.
Oman – ports of Duqm and Salalah
On Tuesday, multiple Iranian drones struck fuel tanks and a tanker at the port of Duqm, with at least one direct hit on a fuel storage tank, causing an explosion.
On the same day, a drone strike was recorded at the Port of Salalah, which handles fuel and industrial minerals.
Athe Nova – oil tanker
On Monday, the Athe Nova, a Honduran-flagged tanker positioned off the coast of Khor Fakkan, UAE, was struck by Iranian drones as it was transiting the Strait of Hormuz, setting it ablaze. Despite the fire, the vessel managed to exit the chokepoint into the Gulf of Oman, and no casualties were reported.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for the strike, identifying the Athe Nova as an “ally of the United States”.
On the same day as the attack, Iran declared the Strait of Hormuz closed, warning that any ship attempting to pass would be “set ablaze”.
Since then, several other tankers have been hit.
Other regional energy disruptions
Although not directly targeted, the following energy sites suspended operations in response to Iranian retaliatory attacks:
Israeli offshore gasfields – Major gas production fields such as Leviathan and Tamar were shut down as a precaution following regional drone and missile launches linked to Iran.
Oil fields in semiautonomous Iraqi Kurdistan – Producers including DNO, Gulf Keystone and Dana Gas halted output as a safety measure amid the escalation.
Rumaila oilfield – Operations at Iraq’s largest oilfield – operated by BP – in southern Iraq were halted on Tuesday as a security precaution due to its proximity to the escalation zone.
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Senior Iranian clerics would have been left “exposed” after an Israeli airstrike hit a meeting place where they were supposed to be convening Tuesday — days after a strike leveled the Tehran compound of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a defense analyst has claimed.
The clerics, members of the Assembly of Experts, had reportedly planned to meet at the location in Qom to deliberate succession plans for Khamenei, who was killed in the strikes, according to The Times of Israel.
“This second strike would be another embarrassment to what has been left of the regime,” Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgav Institute, told Fox News Digital.
“It indicates intelligence dominance and superiority because any movement is detected, meaning they would feel exposed,” Michael added.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in an Israeli airstrike Saturday. (Getty Images)
“As of now, the leadership would feel insecure and hunted, with all of their plans collapsing one after another.”
“They would feel totally isolated and understand that the biggest risk might come from home — from a potential uprising next,” he added.
Israel Defense Forces spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin confirmed that the Israeli Air Force struck the building where senior clerics had planned to assemble, The Times of Israel reported.
KHAMENEI’S DEATH OPENS UNCERTAIN CHAPTER FOR IRAN’S ENTRENCHED THEOCRACY
A general view of Tehran with smoke visible in the distance after explosions were reported in the city, Monday, in Iran. (Contributor/Getty Images)
It remains unclear how many of the 88 members were present at the time of the strike, according to an Israeli defense source cited by the outlet. The second strike on Iran’s leadership comes amid a broader military campaign.
As previously reported by Fox News Digital, U.S. forces have struck more than 1,700 targets across Iran in the first 72 hours of Operation Epic Fury, according to a U.S. Central Command fact sheet.
The campaign is aimed at dismantling Iran’s security apparatus and neutralizing what officials describe as imminent threats.
According to U.S. Central Command, targets have included command-and-control centers, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Joint Headquarters, the IRGC Aerospace Forces headquarters, integrated air defense systems and ballistic missile sites.
FIREBRAND ANTI-AMERICAN CLERIC ALIREZA ARAFI SEEN AS CONTENDER TO REPLACE IRAN’S KHAMENEI
The USS Thomas Hudner fires a Tomahawk land attack missile in support of Operation Epic Fury, Sunday, while at sea. (U.S. Navy/via Getty Images)
“We need strategic patience and determination, and in several weeks most of the job will be accomplished,” Michael added. “Even if the regime does not collapse, Iran will not be like we used to know.
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“I assume that the U.S. and Israel will establish a very robust monitoring mechanism that will enable them to react whenever the regime tries to reconstitute its military capacities again.”
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