Despite the Sudanese civil war that is devastated the region, the All Saints Anglican Cathedral in Khartoum remains to be standing. But its compound is now a graveyard, with a vandalized altar and missing pews, which have been chopped by soldiers for firewood, in keeping with Archbishop Ezekiel Kondo.
At the beginning of the war in April 2023, the cathedral was the seat of Kondo, the 67-year-old primate of the Episcopal (Anglican) Church of Sudan. On April 15, 2023, fighters from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces quickly seized the compound, flipping it into an operation base while Kondo and his family remained inside.
“It happened very abruptly. Nobody expected it,” Kondo recalled, chatting with RNS from Port Sudan, a city on the Red Sea where he has sought refuge since June of last yr. “It was Saturday once we were within the office preparing for the Sunday service, after the primary week of Easter Sunday. We heard a really heavy sound of gunfire, only to get out and find heavy smoke billowing nearby.”
The war for control over northeast Africa is being fought between two rival factions of the military government of Sudan: the Sudanese Armed Forces, under Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and its allies, under the Janjaweed leader Hemedti. The factions turned on one another after jointly wresting control of the civilian government.
Restrictions on media and aid access have made precise statistics on the size of devastation hard to acquire. The United Nations estimates that 750,000 individuals are at threat of starvation, while U.S. envoy Tom Perriello has estimated that the war has killed as many as 150,000 people. Other estimates are much lower, at about 15,000 confirmed deaths. The war has also displaced greater than 10 million people, making it the most important global displacement crisis, and left an extra 25 million in urgent need of humanitarian aid, over half of the country’s population.
For some, that is the second civil war they’ve fled in recent times. In South Sudan, nearly 400,000 people were killed in clashes from 2013 to 2018.
The cathedral is near the military headquarters and the airport, where the full-scale war broke out during Ramadan last yr. With the armed confrontation intensifying, the Rapid Support Forces had rushed its soldiers to surround the church compound, hoping the place of worship wouldn’t be bombed and would guarantee them some protection.
“They were there on the gate and we were unable to do anything. We were unable to get out,” Kondo said. “All the families that were there gathered within the church hall. Other people also ran and joined us. We spent three nights there.”
After three days within the cathedral’s basement without water or food, Kondo and other leaders decided to go away. After interrogations at gunpoint, the soldiers finally allowed them to go. The church leaders and their families then walked for an hour and a half to search out transport to take them to the south of Khartoum with less violence. Kondo’s family remained there for 2 months, only to maneuver again after the bombardment became more intense and closer.
“One of the shells fell near where we were,” Kondo said. He then decided to maneuver along with his family to Port Sudan. “It was very difficult, but we thank God. He has been our protector.”
In Port Sudan, Kondo continues to call for peace as he ministers within the diocese there, while staying in contact with Anglicans still in Khartoum.
“There are pastors who’re still with the people there and I tell them to be strong not be afraid,” Kondo said.
Out of 33 Anglican churches within the greater Khartoum area, only five are not any longer functioning.
The archbishop is offended that many individuals have died in what he calls a pointless and senseless war.
“I would love to induce parachurch organizations to affix in the hassle to send relief food to the people of Sudan. If food just isn’t given, many individuals are going to die,” Kondo said.
Less than 3% of Sudan’s population is Christian, while 91% is Muslim, in keeping with 2020 Pew Research Center data. So far, the fighting armies have attacked or destroyed 165 churches, in keeping with Open Doors.
The war has also emptied many of the senior church leaders and missionary organizations from Khartoum.
Kondo wants the 2 fighting factions to finish the war and agree to provide peace to Sudan’s people, but for that to occur, the countries supplying weapons to the 2 parties must stop, he said.
The international community has been attempting to bring the fighting factions to the negotiating table. Last month’s U.S.-led peace talks in Switzerland ended and not using a deal, similar to two previous ones in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
As the war continues, many Sudanese are dying from diseases, hunger and natural disasters comparable to floods. The U.N. has warned that the violence could turn into or be recognized as a genocide, with reports of civilians being targeted based on their ethnicity. But Kondo said he still hopes in God.
“Yes, we’re in trouble, the country is in trouble, but we all know God is our refuge,” he said.
© Religion News Service
