Sudan's cultural heritage becomes a casualty in its civil war

Key Concepts

• Sudan Civil War: A conflict, now in its third year, marked by famine, ethnic cleansing, and widespread sexual violence, leading to a severe humanitarian catastrophe.
• Rapid Support Forces (RSF): A paramilitary group, historically marginalized and rooted in western Sudan, largely blamed for the destruction and looting of cultural sites.
• Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF): Government forces, also cited for abuses including attacks on civilian targets.
• Cultural Heritage Destruction: The systematic targeting and damage of museums, archaeological sites, libraries, and artifacts, impacting Sudanese identity.
• Sudan National Museum: A key institution in Khartoum, housing approximately 100,000 artifacts, including one of the world's largest Nubian collections, severely damaged and looted.
• UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Sudan is home to three such sites, also threatened by the conflict.
• Sudanese Identity: The collective sense of self for the Sudanese people, deeply intertwined with their rich historical and cultural heritage, now under threat due to its destruction.
• Sudan Art Archive: A digital database initiated by Reem al-Jeally to document contemporary Sudanese art, now serving as a crucial tool for preserving potential and actual losses.
• Virtual Museum: An initiative by Habab Idriss Ahmed and international partners to digitally reconstruct and preserve the collections of institutions like the Sudan National Museum.
• Global Heritage: The concept that cultural heritage, while geographically specific, ultimately belongs to all mankind, emphasizing the international responsibility to protect it.

The Humanitarian Catastrophe in Sudan

Sudan's civil war, now in its third year, has escalated into a humanitarian catastrophe of staggering proportions. The conflict is characterized by famine, ethnic cleansing, and widespread sexual violence. An estimated 150,000 people have been killed, and nearly 13 million have been forced from their homes. The war began in the aftermath of the 2019 downfall of longtime dictator Omar al-Bashir, when two former allies, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), split and engaged in civil war. The conflict has devastated critical infrastructure, including clinics, hospitals, and water supplies, making it difficult to assess the full extent of casualties and damage, particularly in inaccessible regions.

Destruction of Cultural Heritage

Beyond the immediate human toll, the war has caused immense and largely overlooked destruction to Sudan's cultural heritage. This loss profoundly impacts the Sudanese people and the very idea of Sudanese identity.

• Sudan National Museum: Earlier this year, after government forces (SAF) retook Khartoum from the RSF, the Sudan National Museum was found with precious artifacts destroyed or looted. This museum, prior to the war, housed some 100,000 artifacts, including one of the largest Nubian collections in the world.
• Widespread Damage: Sudan's landscape is rich with pyramids, tombs, and temples, and it is home to three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, libraries with historic manuscripts, and numerous other museums. Observers and experts believe these sites have been caught in the crossfire and, in many cases, specifically targeted.
• UNESCO Condemnation: A UNESCO statement confirmed evidence of "large-scale looting and significant damage" in institutions secured by authorities, strongly condemning these attacks on cultural heritage. Habab Idriss Ahmed, a senior inspector at the National Corporation for Antiquities and Museums, stated, "We lost a lot, a lot more you can imagine, and we lost museums, we lost sites, we lost objects, thousands of objects... all this kind shaped the identity of Sudanese people."

Motivations and Blame

Most of the blame for the cultural destruction has been placed on the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). University of Washington historian Christopher Tounsel explains, "One of the reasons why the rapid support forces targeted those museums is because of what they represent, right? Cultural heritage is a foundational part of how nation-states kind of provide legitimacy." He notes the RSF's roots in western Sudan, historically a "restive location" that resisted colonial power and experienced political marginalization through the 20th and early 21st centuries. Habab Idriss Ahmed further suggests the destruction is organized, stating, "It seemed to be it's like a targeted to disappear or to vanish the Sudanese culture... It seems to be like something organized. It's not like something randomly happening." While the RSF bears significant blame, the UN has also cited government Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) for civilian and other abuses, including attacks on mosques and churches.

Preservation Efforts and Digital Initiatives

Despite the ongoing conflict and displacement, efforts are underway to document and preserve Sudan's cultural heritage.

• Virtual Museum Project: Habab Idriss Ahmed, now living in Scotland after fleeing the fighting in 2023, is working with international partners to document losses and create a "virtual museum of the Sudan national museum collection itself." This initiative aims "to rescue, to assess what have been lost."
• Sudan Art Archive: Reem al-Jeally, a curator and visual artist now living in Cairo, started the Sudan Art Archive before the war. This digital database documents contemporary Sudanese art and has become a vital tool for preserving potential and actual losses, especially as artists face displacement and exile. Al-Jeally notes, "There was an urgency because we were facing the problem of displacement and exile. And a lot of artists are more encouraged to actually be part of the archive because we realize the importance of this at the moment."

Impact on Sudanese Identity and Art

The destruction of cultural heritage directly threatens Sudanese identity. The artifacts, sites, and historical records are not just objects but embody the memory and history that shape who the Sudanese people are.

• Contemporary Artists: A generation of contemporary artists has been displaced, forced to leave their lives and work behind. Reem al-Jeally emphasizes the power and truthfulness of Sudanese art: "I think the art in Sudan is very powerful, it is very personal, each artist has his own or her own kind of print and the kind of stories that they're telling. I think it is a very truthful, it's very powerful and I think through this art you can learn more about Sudan and the people of Sudan and these qualities that these people carry with them wherever they're going now." Despite the challenges, displaced Sudanese artists continue to create and exhibit their work globally.

Global Significance and Future Concerns

The war is described as a stalemate with no end in sight, leading to continued loss of life, widespread famine, and displacement. The future of Sudan's cultural heritage remains a major concern.

• Fear of Irreversible Loss: Christopher Tounsel's biggest fear is that "some of these precious artifacts are never recovered, and that future generations of Sudanese citizens are unable to see with their own eyes material history that connects them to the glory of these past civilizations, as well as material that shows how resilient the Sudanese people have been over space and time."
• Universal Heritage: Habab Idriss Ahmed stresses the global importance of Sudanese heritage: "I have a message to all the world, because we thought that the cultural heritage is belonging to the certain geographical area. Yes, this is true. But usually when we study archeology, we know archeology or cultural heritage belongs to all mankind." This perspective underscores that the destruction in Sudan is a loss for humanity as a whole, not just for Sudan.

Synthesis/Conclusion

The civil war in Sudan represents a dual catastrophe: a devastating humanitarian crisis marked by immense loss of life and displacement, and a systematic destruction of its rich cultural heritage. The targeting of museums and historical sites by groups like the RSF is not random but a deliberate act aimed at undermining national legitimacy and identity. While the scale of loss is immense, efforts by individuals like Habab Idriss Ahmed and Reem al-Jeally, through virtual museums and digital archives, offer a glimmer of hope for preserving what remains and reconstructing what has been lost. The ongoing destruction of Sudan's cultural treasures is a profound loss not only for its people but for all of mankind, highlighting the urgent need for international attention and intervention to protect this shared heritage.