Legacy

Threats to civilian populations throughout Sudan continue today. For recent updates, see the Current Situation.

Trauma and displacement amidst on-going conflict
Large segments of the Darfurian population are traumatized by the experience of losing family members, homes, communities, and livelihoods. Those who survived attacks, particularly women who were raped, suffer long-term physical and emotional effects of the violence. And the violence in Darfur continues.

In Darfur, the pattern of violence shifted after 2005 when millions of Fur, Zaghawa, and Masalit civilians were displaced by large-scale government and Janjaweed offensives. New groups have settled in lands cleared of their former populations. Many of the more than 2 million displaced now live in enormous refugee camp "cities," where they face harassment and abuse by government authorities.

The crisis in Darfur inflamed internal conflicts in neighboring Chad. Beginning in 2004, rebel groups launched a series of attacks against their government. Chad and Sudan traded accusations of supporting rebel forces in each other's countries.

Inside Darfur, violence continues with a wider array of perpetrators. Patterns of violence reflect political, tribal, economic, and criminal interests. Civilians continue to be displaced and suffer attacks that often take the form of robbery, rape, and murder.

Many of Darfur's Arab tribes tried to remain neutral during the early years of the conflict. They were neither targeted by nor did they join the government and Janjaweed, but as the conflict continued, some became victims of generalized violence and were displaced. The armed rebel movements have also splintered several times and committed acts of violence against civilians.

A shaky peace hold in the south
The war between the north and south officially ended with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005, but the experience of war remains a not-so-distant reality for many in southern Sudan, especially in the disputed border regions. In March 2008, fighting in Abyei displaced 100,000 people and heightened fears of a return to full-scale civil war.

Emblematic of the suffering of children during the civil war, the "Lost Boys" from Southern Sudan were orphaned or separated from their families and made epic journeys to refugee camps in Ethiopia and Kenya, evading thirst, starvation, wild animals, disease and war -- both the attacks against their homes and refugee camps, as well as forcible recruitment by the SPLA. In 2001, about 3,800 Lost Boys arrived in the United States, where they are scattered in about 38 cities. The resettlement program was halted after September 11, 2001, but restarted in 2004.

As thousands of people remain displaced across Sudan and in refugee camps in Kenya, some are also returning home, supported by voluntary repatriation assistance from the United Nations. Historically under-developed and facing new challenges after over two devastating decades at war, southern Sudan is struggling to rebuild and expand its basic infrastructure and establish improved school system, medical centers, agriculture and housing.

Threats to civilian populations throughout Sudan continue today. For recent updates, see the Current Situation.

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