--- title: How the International Community Failed Sudan description: The violence in Sudan is partially because the international community failed to stop corruption, writes George Clooney and John Prendergast canonical: https://time.com/6275229/how-the-international-community-failed-sudan/ author: George Clooney article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2023-04-28T10:30:51.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-19T07:15:32.219Z article:section: Ideas og:title: How the International Community Failed Sudan og:description: The violence in Sudan is partially because the international community failed to stop corruption, writes George Clooney and John Prendergast og:url: https://time.com/6275229/how-the-international-community-failed-sudan/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7e19cfe93946da5b/698a3c5a86f68e201c6f2617/GettyImages-1252229466.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: UK Government Continues Efforts To Evacuate British Nationals From Sudan og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How the International Community Failed Sudan twitter:description: The violence in Sudan is partially because the international community failed to stop corruption, writes George Clooney and John Prendergast twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7e19cfe93946da5b/698a3c5a86f68e201c6f2617/GettyImages-1252229466.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 02:11 video:published: 2023-04-24 section: world topics: Sudan conflict, Khartoum, embassy evacuations, diplomats, foreign nationals trapped, attacks on diplomats, safe passage, humanitarian aid, hospital closures, healthcare workers targeted, Rapid Support Forces, Sudanese Armed Forces genre: news report, conflict coverage tones: urgent, grave, serious, alarming emotions: fear (high), concern (high), distress (medium) sentiment: negative audience: news readers, policy followers, humanitarian professionals, international affairs audiences organizations: Federal Government of the United States, U.S. Embassy Khartoum, British Embassy in Khartoum, Amnesty International, Rapid Support Forces, Sudanese Armed Forces, MSF, EU content_suitability: war [00:00-02:11]; violence [00:51-01:16]; health crisis [01:35-02:11] transcript_source: automatic transcription transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # How the International Community Failed Sudan > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=5bcf8d8c-8d99-4b29-a780-178cab2de9fb&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Sudanese Army Says Foreign Citizens and Diplomats to Be Evacuated [Watch (HLS stream): Sudanese Army Says Foreign Citizens and Diplomats to Be Evacuated](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/4fmHX5hK.m3u8) (2:11)  _Published 2023-04-24. The Sudanese army said Saturday it was coordinating efforts to evacuate American, British, Chinese and French citizens and diplomats from Sudan on military aircraft, as the bloody fighting that has engulfed the vast African nation entered its second week._ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary The video presents statements from several speakers about the situation in Sudan, centered on the departure of foreign diplomatic staff from Khartoum. It covers announcements by the United States and the United Kingdom about closing or suspending embassy operations and evacuating personnel and dependents. A human rights speaker describes reported attacks on foreigners and diplomats and calls on the warring parties to allow safe passage. The video also describes the shutdown of hospitals and the targeting of health workers, including the looting of an MSF facility. ## Key points - Many people, including foreigners, have been trapped in Khartoum and other cities. (00:04) - The UK, the US and other foreign countries are understood to have evacuated their staff over the weekend. (00:12) - On Saturday, operations at Embassy Khartoum were temporarily suspended, and all U.S. Embassy personnel and their dependents were evacuated in a successful operation. (00:21) - The British Embassy in Khartoum is temporarily closed; British diplomats and dependents are evacuated and diplomatic functions relocated to a nearby diplomatic post. (00:32) - There are reports of attacks on foreigners and diplomatic personnel, including an attack on the EU ambassador to Sudan and on a diplomatic convoy. (00:51) - Amnesty International calls on the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces to ensure safe passage for those fleeing violence or seeking humanitarian aid. (01:16) - Most hospitals in key cities, including Khartoum, have been shut down, and no services are being provided at those health centers. (01:35) - Healthcare workers are being targeted and fear for their safety; MSF reported its own facility was looted and targeted. (01:48) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:12] Opening statement on foreign government. The video opens with a reference to the federal government of the United States. - [00:12 to 00:51] US and UK embassy evacuations. Speakers describe the suspension of US embassy operations and the closure of the British Embassy, with staff and dependents evacuated. - [00:51 to 01:35] Attacks on diplomats and calls for safe passage. Reports of attacks on foreigners and diplomats are described, along with Amnesty International's call for safe passage for civilians. - [01:35 to 02:11] Hospital closures and threats to health workers. The video describes shuttered hospitals and the targeting of doctors, nurses and an MSF facility. ## Key quotes - [00:04] Unnamed speaker: "Many people including foreigners have been trapped in Khartoum and in other cities." - [00:21] U.S. official: "On Saturday I directed the temporary suspension of operations at Embassy Khartoum" - [00:51] Amnesty International representative: "The situation is so dire that people are trapped inside houses and in other buildings and they are unable to flee" - [01:35] Amnesty International representative: "Most of the hospitals in key cities including Khartoum have been shut down." - [01:57] Amnesty International representative: "MSF reported that their own facility has been looted and targeted." ## Questions this video answers - Which countries evacuated their diplomatic staff from Khartoum? [00:12] - What happened to the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum? [00:21] - What did the UK do with its embassy and diplomats in Khartoum? [00:32] - What attacks on foreigners and diplomats were reported? [00:51] - What is Amnesty International asking the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces to do? [01:16] - What is the condition of hospitals and healthcare workers in Sudan? [01:35] ## Content suitability - war [00:00-02:11]: Coverage of armed conflict in Sudan involving the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces. - violence [00:51-01:16]: Reports of attacks on foreigners, the EU ambassador and a diplomatic convoy, with people trapped in buildings. - health crisis [01:35-02:11]: Hospitals shut down and healthcare workers targeted, with an MSF facility looted. by [George Clooney](https://time.com/author/george-clooney/) and [John Prendergast](https://time.com/author/john-prendergast/) Apr 28, 2023 10:30 AM UTC The Sudanese army said Saturday it was coordinating efforts to evacuate American, British, Chinese and French citizens and diplomats from Sudan on military aircraft, as the bloody fighting that has engulfed the vast African nation entered its second week. by [George Clooney](https://time.com/author/george-clooney/) and [John Prendergast](https://time.com/author/john-prendergast/) Apr 28, 2023 10:30 AM UTC Sudan’s violent implosion shows that the international community’s approach to responding to conflict there is misguided and devoid of imagination. Most significant is the failure by the international community to appreciate how stacked the incentives are in favor of those using control of the state to violently loot and repress. Unless these incentives are altered, the calculus favoring violent kleptocracy will persist. One of the two men [vying for control](https://time.com/6272329/sudan-power-struggle-explainer/) of the Sudanese state is General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (known as Hemedti), who heads the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The RSF was formalized in 2013 out of the militias known as the Janjaweed that carried out the genocidal dirty work in Darfur. The RSF is now the largest paramilitary entity on the African continent, receiving significant support over the years from the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar, and Russia’s Wagner Group. Hemedti has enriched both himself and his networks through control of gold smuggling, real estate, and other key sectors of the economy. His main competitor, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and other top army leaders have also monopolized key sectors of the economy, such as banking and agriculture. The army leadership and RSF seek each other’s destruction, and are certainly driving Sudan into an existential death spiral over the economic spoils of state control that has been years in the making. Over the last few years, international mediators have continuously accommodated the two generals, imposing few consequences on them for massive corruption and human rights abuses. Sanctions and legal prosecutions have been too few to make an impact. State power remains the ultimate prize, delivering personal enrichment with few consequences. Sudan has become a classic kleptocracy (“rule by thieves”), and none of the mediation efforts have addressed the incentives in the system that favor violence, repression, and corruption. In fact, the U.S. previously reduced its leverage by removing the most significant sanctions on the regime in 2017 in return for promised reforms instead of evidence of actual change. No consequences were reintroduced in response to the army and the RSF’s subsequent depredations, including perpetrating massive violence in Darfur, killing hundreds of protesters in Khartoum, and overthrowing the civilian-led transitional government in October 2021. Endless rounds of mediation focused on Sudan have professed inclusivity but often move forward without sufficient involvement of local Sudanese “Resistance Committees,” women’s organizations, and other civil society peace and democracy advocates. Mediators and policymakers from Africa, the US, and Europe have accommodated warring leaders and focused on short-term objectives that in no way alter the instability-producing status quo in the hopes that the guns will go silent on their watch. Of course in this moment of conflagration every effort must be made to reduce the damage. But over these past few years, mediators have repeatedly kicked the can down the road on kleptocracy and massive rights violations, entrenching the status quo rather than requiring fundamental change. They have issued repeated unfulfilled threats of legal and financial accountability, to the point where the Sudanese warlords can afford to largely ignore their entreaties. To become major players again in Sudan, the U.S. and Europe must rebuild their leverage. China has leverage because of its economic investments and massive corruption in the oil sector. Russia has influence because of the Wagner Group. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt have clout because of their military support and payoffs. U.S. and European policymakers can’t compete with the flood of dark money, but they have unique strengths that appeal to a broad swathe of Sudanese, from civil society to the responsible parts of the private sector to government and military reformers. And the U.S. in particular has an additional comparative advantage: the predominance of dollar-denominated transactions. Stronger leverage could come from using the broad array of financial tools of pressure and anti-money laundering measures to counter kleptocracy by targeting the officials, enablers, and entities benefiting from mayhem. The U.S. and Europe could ally themselves with Sudanese civil society reformers by embarking on a multilateral campaign focused on building financial leverage for longer-term system change. Working with willing countries, multilateral bodies, and relevant private sector entities, the U.S. and key European countries could impose coordinated targeted sanctions focused on the kleptocratic networks through which both Sudanese warring parties are profiting. These “network sanctions” are a far cry from the usual financial penalties issued in response to African abuses, where individual officials are targeted, rather than the broader set of cutouts, collaborators and companies that are part of the massive looting machines that several governments like Sudan have become. Furthermore, the U.S. Treasury Department could also issue an advisory to banks around the world articulating a clear anti-money laundering strategy aimed at the corrupt Sudanese networks and their enablers extending to Russia, the Gulf, and elsewhere. Shutting these networks out of the international financial system would disincentivize the ongoing win-at-all-cost struggle for state control. Ultimately, for peace and democracy to have a chance, international efforts should focus on making it financially painful to benefit from human suffering through war, repression, and corruption. Unless that fundamental calculus favoring violent kleptocracy is altered significantly, the Sudanese conflict will bleed on for as long as there are resources to loot. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6275229/how-the-international-community-failed-sudan/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6275229/how-the-international-community-failed-sudan/"},"headline":"How the International Community Failed Sudan","datePublished":"2023-04-28T10:30:51.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-19T07:15:32.219Z","description":"The violence in Sudan is partially because the international community failed to stop corruption, writes George Clooney and John Prendergast","url":"https://time.com/6275229/how-the-international-community-failed-sudan/","keywords":["Sudan","freelance"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7e19cfe93946da5b/698a3c5a86f68e201c6f2617/GettyImages-1252229466.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"George Clooney","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/george-clooney/"},{"@type":"Person","name":"John Prendergast","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/john-prendergast/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7e19cfe93946da5b/698a3c5a86f68e201c6f2617/GettyImages-1252229466.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"UK Government Continues Efforts To Evacuate British Nationals From Sudan","caption":"UK Government Continues Efforts To Evacuate British Nationals From Sudan","creditText":"MoD Crown Copyright via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/tag/sudan/","name":"Sudan"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6275229/how-the-international-community-failed-sudan/","name":"How the International Community Failed Sudan"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Sudanese Army Says Foreign Citizens and Diplomats to Be Evacuated","description":"The Sudanese army said Saturday it was coordinating efforts to evacuate American, British, Chinese and French citizens and diplomats from Sudan on military aircraft, as the bloody fighting that has engulfed the vast African nation entered its second week.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/4fmHX5hK/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2023-04-24T16:40:02.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/4fmHX5hK.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/6275229/how-the-international-community-failed-sudan/","duration":"PT2M11S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/6275229/how-the-international-community-failed-sudan/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```