The United Nations children’s agency has revealed armed men are sexually assaulting children as young as toddlers in Sudan’s civil war, leaving rape victims traumatized.
Reports indicate that these horrifying actions have traumatised children so much that survivors have tried to take their own lives.
Sexual violence is on the rise and it is widely documented as a weapon of war in the country’s conflict that has spanned across the last two years.
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Nonetheless, Unicef’s report is the first detailed account of what sexual violence on young children means for their future.
According to the report, one-third of the rape victims in Sudan were boys, who have faced “unique challenges” in struggling to open up on what they face or reaching out for help.
Although 221 rape cases against children have been officially reported since the start of 2024, the actual figure could be way higher, according to Unicef.
Sudan is a country where there’s loads of stigma, and this affects survivors and their families from opening up about rape, especially when it’s associated with armed groups.
The most shocking revelation could be that 16 of the victims were under the age of five years, with four of them being a year old or under.
Unicef’s report does not indicate who is to be directly held liable for the situation, yet other UN investigations have blamed these rape cases on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), stating that RSF fighters had adopted a thread of using sexual violence to suppress and impose fear in civilians who oppose their requests.
The RSF, which is in this war against its former allies, the Sudanese Armed Forces, say they’ve committed no offense.
“Children as young as one being raped by armed men should shock anyone to their core and compel immediate action,” said Unicef executive director Catherine Russell.
“Millions of children in Sudan are at risk of rape and other forms of sexual violence, which is being used as a tactic of war. This is an abhorrent violation of international law and could constitute a war crime. It must stop.”
Unicef reports that armed men in Sudan have stormed homes, demanding that girls be surrendered, with some even raped in front of their families, as the victims of these acts suffer serious injuries and unwanted pregnancies.
Beyond the 221 rapes documented, Unicef also recorded 77 additional cases of sexual assault against children, primarily attempted rape.
Sudan’s ongoing war has left women and children especially vulnerable, with three in four school-age girls now dropping out of school.
What makes it worse?
Medical help is scarce, as hospitals have been destroyed, looted, or occupied by these warring factions.
US aid cuts have further weakened child protection services, shutting down many Emergency Response Rooms, which were once supported by local activists.
Women-led organizations, crucial in aiding survivors, receive less than 2% of the UN’s Sudan Humanitarian Fund.
According to the BBC, She Leads, a local survivor support group, was forced to close after US funding stopped, though it was operating on a modest budget.
“We don’t have the luxury of being depressed,” said Sulaima Elkhalifa, a Sudanese human rights defender, highlighting how war leaves no room for trauma recovery as victims struggle to survive and flee.
The situation in Sudan is one that has left many across the world distraught about how the conflict is having a dire impact on women and children in particular as the turmoil intensifies by the day.
