Australian Senator Calls for Sanctions Against UAE for Supporting Genocide in Sudan
Australian Senator Lydia Thorpe expressed her full solidarity with the Sudanese people’s struggle against the ongoing genocide in Darfur, calling on the ruling Australian Labor government to sever trade ties with the United Arab Emirates and impose strict sanctions for its support of the Rapid Support Forces militia, which is accused of committing atrocities in Sudan.
In her address to the Australian Parliament today, Senator Thorpe said: “As with most genocides, the West is not merely complicit, but an active driver of the conflict. Sudan is burning, and blood stains the ground so much that it can be seen from space. Hundreds of mothers were killed inside a maternity hospital, and thousands of civilians were killed and forcibly displaced as the UAE-backed Rapid Support Forces militia stormed El Fasher last week.” She added: “Our so-called leaders have once again failed to protect an entire generation, allowing the UAE to fuel a new genocide in order to seize Darfur’s vast gold reserves.”
She noted that Sudanese activists have repeatedly warned the international community to take urgent action, but for Western powers, maintaining relations with the UAE and ensuring its control over Sudan’s resources has been more important than the lives of the people of Darfur.
The senator asserted that the UAE is smuggling Western-made weapons into Sudan, the same weapons being used to carry out the genocide, and criticized the Australian government for continuing to strengthen its trade ties with the UAE despite these crimes.
Thorpe called for immediate action, including severing trade relations and imposing sanctions on the UAE, opening urgent humanitarian corridors for Sudanese refugees, and providing support and assistance to the Sudanese community in Australia. The Sudanese community in the Australian state of Victoria organized a large solidarity rally in central Melbourne on Tuesday under the banner “Sudan is Bleeding – El Fasher is Calling You,” condemning the massacres and horrific violations committed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia against civilians in El Fasher and the Darfur region.
A large number of Sudanese community members, Australian humanitarians, and human rights organizations participated in the rally. Participants waved Sudanese flags and held banners calling for an end to the genocide and for the perpetrators to be held accountable. They also chanted slogans demanding urgent international action to protect civilians.
Speakers affirmed their complete solidarity with the Sudanese people in their struggle against the genocide being perpetrated by the militia. They called on the Australian government and the international community to condemn the ongoing crimes, impose sanctions on those supporting the militia, and provide further humanitarian aid to the victims.