As the conflict in Sudan rages on into its second year, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) issued a dire warning about the devastating impact on children, with approximately 24 million on the brink of a “generational catastrophe”. Since the outbreak of violence in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the CRC has documented a series of horrific atrocities.
Reports have surfaced of civilians, including children, being subjected to rape, denial of humanitarian aid leading to a lack of basic necessities, and other violations of international law, including economic and social rights violations. The situation has left nearly 24 million Sudanese children in peril, with 14 million in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, 19 million lacking access to education, and four million displaced from their homes.
The conditions these children face are dire, with shortages of food and clean water, limited healthcare, and medicines. The number of children killed or subjected to sexual violence as a weapon of war has sharply increased compared to previous years, with widespread recruitment of children into armed forces, particularly in Darfur and eastern Sudan.
Schools have been destroyed, and over 170 campuses have been turned into emergency shelters, jeopardizing children’s right to education and exposing them to exploitation and trafficking. The CRC has called on Sudan to take immediate action to end these violations and uphold its commitments under the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The Committee also urged Sudan to cooperate with the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for the Sudan and adhere to the Optional Protocol on the involvement of children in armed conflict. It is crucial for Sudan to cease recruiting children and protect them from the impact of military operations. The international community must come together to address this crisis and safeguard the rights of Sudanese children.
