Rapper ditches Dubai over conflict

When fans saw rapper Macklemore had cancelled an upcoming performance in the UAE, they assumed it was in solidarity with Gaza. However, it was in solidarity over the war in Sudan, which has already killed tens of thousands of people, left millions more hungry and triggered a humanitarian disaster. BBC News reports that Dubai has been widely accused of funding the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), one of the warring sides in Sudan. ‘The crisis in Sudan is catastrophic,’ Macklemore said in an Instagram post yesterday. Some food security specialists estimate up to 2.5m people could die of starvation and illness by October. Macklemore’s stance has thrust the conflict into popular culture, and activists hope other artists will follow suit. The RSF is battling the Sudanese army for control of the country and has been accused of sexual violence, looting and ethnic cleansing in areas it controls. A Human Rights Watch report suggests the RSF may have committed genocide against non-Arabs in a city where 15 000 people are feared to have been killed, something the group denies. The RSF traces its roots to a militia, known as the Janjaweed, which were also accused of genocide 20 years ago in Sudan – an estimated 300 000 people died back then.

Full BBC News report

Meanwhile, 12 UN human rights experts have called for immediate support for survivors of gender-based violence and an end to the targeting of women first responders and human rights defenders by all armed groups in Sudan. Dabanga reports that the office UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva flagged the devastating lack of adequate care for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence in Sudan. This includes sexual and reproductive health care and psychosocial care. They expressed ‘grave concern for the many documented cases of sexual abuse, rape – including gang rape – enforced prostitution, sexual slavery, kidnapping, enforced disappearances and/or unlawful killings by the RSF and other armed groups. ‘These violations are occurring amidst catastrophic levels of humanitarian crisis within Sudan, which have displaced of more than 7.9m people’ within the country,' they said in a statement.

Full Radio Dabanga report