UN leader calls for cooler heads in Sudan

[Cover photo by Samaritan's Purse.
 Story photo by AIM-AIR.]

Sudan (MNN) ― The UN Secretary-General is trying to keep a lid on the simmering tensions threatening all-out war again in Sudan.

Ban Ki-Moon is calling on cooler heads to prevail over the conflict between Sudan and newly-independent South Sudan. The world's leaders echoed the United Nations' condemnation of  Khartoum's bombings of a refugee camp in South Sudan's Unity state--a charge Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir denies.

It's the first test of independence since South Sudan formally seceded from Sudan in July following a successful independence referendum in January that was guaranteed in a 2005 peace deal. 

Disputes that festered are flaring into violence. Phil Byler with Africa Inland Mission says, "The President of North Sudan is just a ruthless man who doesn't care who he kills. Bombing the refugee camps in the South is an atrocity, in my opinion."

It may be that the war of words is now a step closer to a genuine conflict. Satellite photos revealed last week's strikes on refugee camps were just the beginning. It appears Sudan's military is repairing and improving air bases in its Blue Nile state, potentially allowing it to bring challenge over disputed borders with South Sudan.

Now, both leaders of Khartoum and Juba are predicting the possibility of a new war in an oil-rich region that has seen a spike in cross-border attacks. "The President of South Sudan is now saying that war is a possibility. Up until this point, he has repeatedly said, 'We will not go to war again.' This is a disturbing trend," says Byler.

It is disturbing, but not alarming. "All of our missionaries, besides the pilots, are well out of the area. Samaritan's Purse personnel were on the ground; our AIM-AIR pilots were in the air, and they mobilized an intense evacuation force to deal with the bombing."  

On November 9, SIM evacuated six team members from Doro base--the area in which the refugee camp was bombed last week by Sudan's military. The team was moved before the attack. They were flown out of Doro and are in Nairobi until things settle down.  

This not only presents a direct threat to these refugees of the Nuba mountains and the Samaritan's Purse team, but a challenge for ministry and aid teams. Byler says, "The war activity along the border area disrupts life drastically. That's why there are refugees. Consequently, the work of the church and the presentation of the Gospel is disrupted as everybody goes into a survival mode."

AIM AIR has been supporting the work of relief efforts that are helping to meet the immediate needs of those who were displaced. They are providing critical supplies and evacuation options to several other organizations in contested regions between North and South Sudan. 

Please be praying for the country of Sudan as a whole, that the Church would grow strong in this turbulent time. "We're alert and watchful," says Byler, "hoping and praying that the war will not restart and/or spread throughout the region."

As the tensions ignite, "Pray that in the providence and sovereignty of God, He will spare the people of South Sudan from another war, Number One. Number Two, pray that even in the horrible things that are happening localized in Sudan, God will make Himself known to the people that are seeking Him."

Please also pray for safety for AIM AIR personnel and passengers as the team seeks to serve those who are serving in these tense locations.