Sudan: The Suffering Continues

Sudan has a 97% Islamic population. It is the third-largest gold producer in Africa, and it contains a mosaic of ethnic groups who cordially hate each other, with Arab Muslims opposing Africanized Muslims. This is the explosive cocktail that the Sudanese Catholic minority, estimated at between 1% and 2% of the country's total population, must drink.

Since 2023, the year that marked the beginning of the civil war between the Sudanese army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of Mohamed Hamdan Daglo (known as "Hemetti), Sudan has been plunged into an unprecedented crisis. The fighting, which has already claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 12 million people, has severely affected Christian communities, particularly in areas such as Khartoum, Darfur, and El-Obeid.

In Kosti, south of the capital, a missionary described the daily difficulties in Vatican News (March 7, 2025): drone attacks, power outages, and epidemics threaten the survival of Catholic schools, which remain a pillar of children's education. "Education is one of the priorities of the Church in Sudan. Since evangelization is prohibited, we act through education," said this priest, who wished to remain anonymous.

The Catholic Church, limited in its resources, continues to play a key role. In Kosti. Their eight secondary schools and six kindergartens, run by priests, have seen their enrollment drop from 3,000 to 700 students since the start of the war, as families fled to South Sudan or Kenya. Despite this, these institutions now welcome internally displaced persons, offering refuge and a faint hope amidst the chaos.

This chaos is not made easier by being baptized: "If you're a Christian, you can't work in certain companies, you can't get a good position, you always have to be subordinate. If Muslims know you're a Christian, they turn away from you. So Christians live by doing small daily jobs in the homes of Muslims and Arabs, at least to survive," explains the missionary.

It is a persecution that is also taking place quietly within the administration: "When we are in the various government offices, we are asked, 'Why are you Christians still here?' But because we believe that one day there will be a change and that things will turn around. Then after the war, perhaps there will be a good wind," sighs the cleric interviewed by Vatican News. 

A "good wind" that is blowing thanks to the surprise alliance between the secessionist armies of the RSF and those of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North, led by Abdelaziz Al-Hilu, also at war with the central government in Khartoum, from which General al-Burhan pulls the strings. If, as is looming, the armed groups were to unite, the situation could change, especially since the new alliance promises a more democratic state, more favorable to religious minorities, particularly Christians.

But we must remain cautious, because here, as elsewhere, promises are only binding on those who listen to them. While al-Burhan's loyalist forces have often been guilty of massacres that have not spared Christian populations, General "Hemetti" has no less blood on his hands. However, seeking the favor of the United States and East African countries, "Hemetti" has every interest in playing the role—at least temporarily—of unifier and peacemaker.

For the sake of completeness, it is worth adding the humanitarian crisis shaking the country. A recent power outage, due to a drone attack on the nearby Umm Dabakar power plant, makes access to drinking water difficult and increases the risk of epidemics. More than 400 cases of cholera have already been recorded in the city, and the missionary from Kosti mentioned above must fight daily to enforce hygiene rules in the school he runs to prevent further mass casualties.