Sudan: Chemical Crimes and International Silence — Is strategic deterrence a mere illusion?

Amid recent U.S. statements before the United Nations Security Council confirming that the Sudanese Armed Forces have used chemical weapons in a blatant violation of international law, the world must awaken from its slumber.

During a session held on December 23, 2025, the U.S. representative condemned the use of these prohibited weapons, describing them as a red line that threatens global security.

This declaration is not merely a diplomatic rebuke, but a call for collective action that goes beyond words towards genuine accountability.

How can the international community ignore a tragedy repeatedly unfolding in Sudan, where the army deploys chemical weapons against its own people, committing ethnic and racial violations, while continuing to receive support from countries such as Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, and Qatar?

This silence is not simply negligence; it is strategic complicity that encourages the recurrence of crimes in the future. Chemical Violations: A Historical Pattern Requiring Immediate Deterrence.

The use of chemical weapons in Sudan is not an isolated incident, but a continuation of a pattern of violations spanning decades. In January 2025, the United States confirmed that the Sudanese army had used such weapons at least twice against the Rapid Support Forces and civilians, leading to the imposition of sanctions.

This use recalls earlier crimes, such as Saddam Hussein’s attack on Halabja in 1988, or the Assad regime’s use of sarin gas in Ghouta in 2013. In all these cases, chemical weapons served as tools of mass repression, targeting ethnic and racial groups — exactly as is occurring today in Darfur and other parts of Sudan, where the army is committing genocide.Strategically, accountability must be a top priority to deter any future regime.

If the world allows this violation to pass without punishment, it opens the door to the spread of such weapons in other conflicts, particularly in fragile regions such as the Middle East and Africa.As noted in a report by Amnesty International, “chemical weapons in Sudan represent a dangerous descent across global red lines.” Deterrence is not an option; it is a necessity to preserve an international order that protects humanity from barbarism.External Support: International Complicity That Must Be Held AccountableWhat deepens the tragedy is the continued support the Sudanese army receives from several states, despite their knowledge of these violations. Iran, for example, supplies drones and weapons, exploiting the conflict to expand its influence in the Red Sea, as revealed by Western intelligence reports.

Egypt and Turkey have also intensified their military support following the fall of the city of El-Fasher in November 2025, with the army expecting to obtain additional weapons from both.Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, provides logistical and political support that contributes to impunity and the continuation of grave violations, despite its participation in peace mediation efforts. Qatar, for its part, has played a covert role in arming the army and financing extremist Islamist battalions.These countries are fully aware that their weapons are used to bombard civilians and commit ethnic violations, as documented in reports by Human Rights Watch detailing the obstruction of humanitarian aid. How can this support be interpreted as anything other than complicity? The world must hold these states accountable through economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation, as they prolong the war and contribute directly to the crimes.

As one Sudanese observer put it, “external support for the army turns the conflict into a proxy war, exacerbating humanitarian violations.” Holding these states accountable is not revenge, but a strategic step to halt the flow of weapons and force the parties towards peace.Global Silence: Is Sudan a ‘Poor Country’ Unworthy of Justice?How can the world overlook such a tragedy? Is it because Sudan is a poor country, or because its people are deemed unworthy of protection from their killers? The civil war that erupted in April 2023 has displaced millions and killed thousands, yet international attention remains weak compared to other conflicts.

This neglect is not accidental, but the result of geopolitical priorities that favor regional stability over humanity — a short-sighted approach tied to the influence of states such as Saudi Arabia, which, through back-channel diplomacy, prevents international scrutiny and accountability for violations in Sudan, despite the fact that chaos there threatens stability in the Red Sea and the Horn of Africa, potentially fueling refugee flows and the spread of terrorism.The world must immediately halt the war by imposing a comprehensive arms embargo and hold both sides — the army and the Rapid Support Forces — accountable before the International Criminal Court. Independent investigations into chemical violations must also be supported, as called for in a UN report in November 2025.Strategic deterrence must begin today, before Sudan becomes a symbol of the world’s failure to confront barbarism. Justice for the Sudanese people is not an option, but a moral and security obligation that will define the credibility of the international order itself.

* Bayethe Msimang is an independent writer, analyst and political commentator.

** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media.