Raging violence forcing Sudanese women to take their own lives, says UN

The United Nations on Tuesday published horrific accounts of women and girls fleeing attacks in war-torn Sudan, including one who said she was urged to kill herself with a knife rather than be raped.

Amid a dramatic escalation of violence, at least 124 civilians have been killed in central Al Jazirah state since October 20 and another 135,000 have fled to other states, said the United Nations Population Fund, which specialises in the health of women and children.

Of the people who fled, 3,200 are pregnant women, it added.

The conflict in Sudan pits the regular army, under Abdel Fattah al Burhan, against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, led by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.

The war has led to the deaths of tens of thousands of people since it broke out in April 2023 and displaced more than 11 million more, according to the International Organization for Migration.

The UN population agency quoted the Al Jazirah health ministry as saying preliminary reports are that 27 women aged from six to 60 were raped or assaulted in Al Jazirah.

"These cases are a tiny fraction of the widespread sexual violence taking place," the agency said in a statement.

The statement quoted a woman named Maria, a mother of two, as saying gunmen "persecuted us, beat us, pointed weapons at us, and inspected our daughters."

It also cited an unnamed girl in a displaced persons camp as saying she had been given a terrifying choice.

"My male relatives, including brothers, uncles and fathers, gave us knives and told us to take our own lives if threatened with rape by armed fighters," she was quoted as saying.

The statement said women reported seeing other women throw themselves into a river to avoid being abused by armed men.

"Survivors of sexual violence are running away and hiding because their families have threatened to end their lives to wash away dishonour," the UN agency said.

'Sickening hallmark'

“There are no signs of respite” in the brutal violence faced by the Sudanese people, said Ramesh Rajasingham, Director of Coordination, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, warning of troubling projections.

Citing recent reports of mass killings and horrific sexual violence in Al Jazirah State — “a sickening hallmark of this conflict”, he observed that women and girls continue to be at the centre of horrendous suffering.

'Scorched earth tactics'

“I am speaking to you with agony and urgency,” Niemat Ahmadi, Founder and President of Darfur Women Action Group, told the Security Council on Tuesday, describing “scorched earth tactics” deployed by the Rapid Support Forces in several regions, including El Fasher and Al Jazirah.

"Widespread rape and murderous violence have been carried out at an alarming rate in Al Jazirah. The last two weeks have witnessed unspeakable atrocities inflicted on civilians, Ahmadi said.

"This should not and must not be the reality in a world governed by international laws designed to protect civilians."