rapid support forces in
Sudan have claimed a key
battlefield victory.
The ISF says
that they have taken
the town of CAS in south Darfur
They claim to have overrun
a Sudanese army brigade
in the region, seizing
combat vehicles
and dozens of cannons as well.
David McKenzie is tracking the story
for us.
So, David, RCF making gains.
No doubt
the Sudanese
military themselves are going to try
to recapture some of these areas.
How close are we to a civil war
in this country? Do you think?
Well, to the two separate people
I spoke to just today, one,
a former ambassador of Sudan to the US
and other
one of the most informed
analysts of the country,
both just called it a civil war
without much prompting.
So I think we are there.
If not, we are rapidly
approaching that scenario.
If you look at the way that this conflict
which started in Khartoum
but has spread in
what many call
a worst case
scenario to many far reaches
of that massive country,
including in Darfur,
we are likely in a civil conflict,
possibly a civil war.
Now, that latest information
coming from the rapid support forces
and independent sources to CNN that
they have claimed battlefield victories
in the southern part
of Darfur, this matches
extensive reporting at this point.
That they are making gains
in Darfur in some way,
as you'd expect
that the rapid support
support force
grew out of the Janjaweed militia,
which back then
more than around
20 years ago
and now is being accused of
multiple human rights abuses,
abuses and possible atrocities,
something they deny.
But the evidence is piling up
and the worries
from the international actors
and Sudanese is
that this could just get worse.
The latest
I am hearing from analysts
is that the RCF
seems to have taken
a significant portion of Khartoum.
They describe the situation
now being
a maybe
a lost window
for some kind of
a negotiated peace settlement
before this really becomes an all out
civil war.
That has the potential,
of course, for devastating consequences
further in Sudan,
but also to spillover
to neighboring states,
and particularly
in particularly
the worries
west into Chad in those border regions.
But at this point, I'm clear
that the mediation efforts
by the Saudis and Americans,
which have stalled now
and the proposals
by the Egyptians,
Ethiopians and others
as part of the African Union
will get anywhere.
So the situation is not looking great.
And rough,
at least in the west of the country,
appears to be consolidating its grounds.
And then President William Ruto of Kenya
also intervening,
speaking with General Al-burhan as well.
No word yet on any progress.
As you point out,
all attempts
to piece it from, you know,
so far have failed, obviously.
David McKenzie, live for us there.
Thank you so much.
Earlier, we looked at heavy
fighting in the Darfur region of Sudan.
While Sudan's ongoing
conflict is devastating the population
as a whole.
Women and girls especially hit hard, won.
U.N.
estimates
more than
4.2 million women and girls are at risk
of sexual violence.
Rape is often used as a weapon of war.
And you've got shame, stigma
and fear of reprisal,
often discouraging
the reporting of such crimes.
The NGO Save
the Children
says that children as young as 12
are being targeted
for their gender, for their ethnicity
and their vulnerability as well.
Another key point of view,
women are key to the food
production chain,
and they can't get to the farms
when they can't prepare food
because of fighting.
Their families go without ever.
If the mother is pregnant,
or nursing, the malnutrition
then affects yet
another generation as well.
Time now for the exchange.
Getting girls and women
the help that they so desperately need
is crucial.
We're joined
by UNICEF Goodwill
Ambassador Vanessa McCarthy,
who is in Rwanda for us.
Vanessa, thank you so much.
For being with us.
We know the statistics on violence
against women
on the continent,
especially during times of war.
We also know how much more affects
women and girls,
but teenage girls
are especially vulnerable.
That's something
that you've been looking at.
Just walk us through that
Yes.
It's evident that,
you know,
the rights of adults
and girls are in a crisis,
especially in a war unlike
many young girls and women are
being exposed
to sexual violence
as a result of these wars.
And it makes me think about how,
you know, young girls
and young women as well.
We do not leave a single issue to AIDS.
And we find that in
just like wars,
women and girls
find themselves on the frontlines.
They
disproportionately
impact by
Vanessa,
Vanessa, can you hear me?
I think we're having audio issues
with Vanessa.
Yes, I can hear you.
Okay,
let me try and ask you one last question.
We were having issues with your audio.
We couldn't quite hear 100%
what you were saying,
but I'm just going to try to ask you
another question. Hopefully it works.
We know that across the continent
there are pretty much double
the number of girls as boys
who are not in any form of
education or employment
whatsoever.
Obviously, that is heightened
when there's a war going on.
You have women trapped
in a cycle of poverty,
of violence, of war,
and of so much uncertainty.
What do we need to do as a whole,
just as in
just in terms
of the international community
stepping up to the plate
to ensure
that adolescent girls in a place
like Sudan, despite what's going on,
have a future that they can fight for
Well,
first of all, it's important
for the international community
to understand that
where these war
where there is the climate crisis,
the lives of young girls and young women
are definitely in a crisis.
And like I said before,
you know, young girls
and young women,
we do not lead single issue lives.
You find that
the simple life of a girl
that is being impacted
by this war is the same God
who is not able to finish school
or have access to food.
So it's really important
that the international community
raises awareness about the impact
and how the rights of girls
and young
women are in a crisis,
especially with a war like this.
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