Since April 15, 2023, Sudan has been embroiled in a devastating war that has created a horrific humanitarian crisis, with thousands losing their lives and widespread destruction of infrastructure. Yet, this war has received little media attention, particularly from Western countries, as the international community has focused first on Ukraine and then on the Hamas-Israel conflict, largely ignoring the situation in Sudan. The war has caused a mass exodus of Sudanese citizens. As of late 2025, Sudan was still experiencing the world's largest displacement crisis, with an estimated 14.5 million displaced people. We believe that justice for women affected by war can only be achieved by recognizing their intrinsic value in human society and their right to protection and the preservation of their lives and dignity during and after war. This justice includes protecting them from death at the hands of deadly war machines, from violence, sexual trafficking, and violations of their human rights and the rights of their children. It also includes protecting them from deprivation of healthcare, hunger, thirst, poverty, displacement, psychological trauma, and social isolation. Furthermore, it requires protecting them from a patriarchal system that perpetuates their exploitation and subjugation to men, destroys their identity and autonomy, and discriminates against them
based on gender and other factors. It also necessitates protecting them from discriminatory constitutions and systems of
governance, from the injustice of justice systems and legal legislation, and from marginalization in decision-making. This is a
call to support equal citizenship for women and men in Sudan, Darfur, Africa, conflict-affected areas, and everywhere in the
world where women are often treated as mere objects of men's pleasure, especially during times of war.
Dr. Suad Mustafa Elhag Musa holds a PhD in Peace Studies from the University of Bradford, England. She is a researcher and author of "Hawks and Doves in Sudan's Armed Conflict: Al-Hakkamat Baggara Women of " James Carey, winner of the 2019 Aidoo-Snyder Prize. She has expertise on gender issues, peacebuilding, women's political participation, women's protection and security, democratic governance, community development, and humanitarian issues. She is a fellow and associate at the Horn International Institute for Strategic Studies in Nairobi, Kenya, and co-founder and director of the Gender Center for Peacebuilding, Justice, and Sustainable Development in El Fasher, Darfur, Sudan.
Co-hosted by the Department of African, Middle Eastern, and South Asian Literatures and Languages; Center for African Studies; and Rutgers Global