Islamic Terrorism is the Enemy Israel & Africa Share
In Southern Sudan, slavery persists. Sudanese men, women, and children are taken and sold into slavery; the women are often taken into sex slavery where they are forced to bear children for their slave masters. Once the babies born are old enough, they are taken from their mothers and forced to work, usually never to be seen again. This has occurred in the region since Arab Muslims conquered Egypt in 639. Back then, Sudan was called Nubia.
Sudan has started to become a bigger conversation in the world of activism, but not because of slavery. This fact will be the undoing of many self-proclaimed pro-Africa activists; the undoing is already taking place.
The story that is getting more attention is the struggle between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The Sudan Armed Forces is the official military of Sudan. The RSF was formed and declared an official military in 2013 by the former dictator Omar Bashir. The RSF is largely made up of Janjaweed fighters who, between 2003 and 2008 raped, castrated, and brutally murdered hundreds of thousands of Sudanese men, women, and children, and displaced millions. This is known as the Darfur Genocide.
In 2019, Bashir was ousted by the Sudanese military and the RSF.
Today, the RSF and their Arab militia allies continue their bloody campaign in their struggle to be the dominant force in Sudan once again. Since April 15th, 2023, reports say that at least thousands of Sudanese civilians have been murdered, and millions displaced.
Lately, the awareness surrounding this has increased significantly with activists and celebrities calling attention to the horrific atrocities taking place. Social media influencers use the hashtags #PrayForSudan, #AllEyesOnDarfur, and perhaps the most popular, #FreeSudan.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Republic of Congo, slavery also persists. This does get discussed, but not in its fullness. Similarly to Sudan, Congo has had its share of dictatorship, civil war, and vicious and brutal slaughtering and enslaving of civilians. Western activists tend to focus more on harsh slave conditions in the DRC’s cobalt mines, how children are forced to work, with no protection from deadly toxins, no hardhats, etc., and all to provide things like lithium batteries for other countries including the US. Though many environmentalists applaud the growing use of cobalt as a greener alternative to lead-acid batteries, the way the material is extracted is what many human rights activists argue is inhumane and unjust.
The Cobalt aspect of the plight of the Congolese people has been highlighted and exposed more and more in just the past few years. With this, #FreeCongo has become a trending hashtag.
#FreeSudan is usually a hashtag that gets used in the same posts as #FreeCongo and #FreePalestine. Activists who focus primarily on Africa seem to have a growing vested interest in the Middle East, particularly Israel and Gaza.
This intersectional activism, however, comes with more than a few red flags, but also a major opportunity.
We’ll start with the red flags. In Southern Sudan, it does not take much digging at all to find that the main cause of suffering is the Islamist RSF and their Islamist allies. It is difficult to determine the exact number, but there are at least 1 million slaves in South Sudan today. The Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel partners with organizations like iAbolish and the African Jewish Alliance which document accounts from Sudanese ex-slaves. One woman, Amel Dor Manyuol, freed in 2014, the only survivor of six children, said this in an interview:
“The slave raiders came at night, on horses. I watched them shoot some of my brothers and sisters, and I saw the rest flee into the bush. I assume they’re dead. We were four brothers and three sisters: Adup, Akot, Achier, Abuk, Adut, Akuol and me. I haven’t seen any of them since.…”
“Mohammed had one wife and two older sons. They were all unkind to me. You can see on my left arm I have a scar from a bite, and a burn-scar. These were given to me by the baby girl I had to take care of, after she grew up. On my left leg is a knife scar, from Mohammed’s children. When Mohammed saw these wounds, he said, “She’s a jengai [a racial epithet]. It’s no problem.””
“Mohammed’s sons raped me. So did Mohammed.”
“Mohammed had me circumcised. An old man named Abdullah did it. They told me, “If you join us, you have to be like us.” At first I refused, but I was terribly beaten until I agreed. Before that, they gave me a new name: Hawa.”
In the Congo, a large contributing factor to the suffering of the Congolese are Islamist groups. According to Human Rights Watch:
“The humanitarian and human rights situation across the country, and especially in the east, remains dire. Nearly 5.5 million people are displaced across the country, and one in three people are facing severe or acute food insecurity, according to the United Nations. Some 120 armed groups are still active in eastern Congo, including several groups that include fighters from neighboring Burundi, Rwanda, and Uganda. The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a Ugandan-led armed Islamist group with ties to the Islamic State (ISIS), has been responsible for some of the deadliest attacks on civilians in recent years. Many of these groups, as well as their backers among the Congolese political and military elite, control lucrative mineral resources, land, and taxation rackets. Many of them have also recruited children among their ranks.”
When Hamas invaded Israel on October 7th, 2023, they slaughtered over 1200 people, kidnapped about more 150, raped, tortured, burned entire families alive, and worse. They also filmed themselves doing all of these things.
Below is a picture of a Black African young boy by the name of Joshua Luito Mollel in his final moments. He was a 21-year-old agriculture student from Tanzania, taking advantage of one of many Israeli intern programs. He had goals of going back home and starting his agri-business.
On October 7th, 2023, Hamas tortured, tormented, and slaughtered Joshua, and they recorded themselves doing it. They mocked him, called him names, beat him up, and eventually shot him point blank in the head several times after he died. He, along with another Tanzanian young man, Felix Mtenga (22) were victims of Hamas terror on October 7th.
The elephant in the room we are in now is how brutal the Arab world is toward Africa and Africans. In South Sudan, the RSF has direct ties to Arab militia groups, and it’s this alliance that has been wreaking havoc on the people of South Sudan. In Uganda and the Congo, the ADF has direct links to the Islamic State, and it’s this alliance that has been wreaking havoc on the Congolese people. In Gaza, Hamas has ties to the Islamic Republic of Iran, and even though those ties have been strained in the past, the Islamic Republic’s celebration of Hamas after October 7th would say otherwise; as would Iran’s biggest proxy group, Hezbollah in Lebanon throwing their hat in the ring also speaks volumes of this Axis of Resistance.
ISIS, the ADF, the RSF, and Hamas do not align with Iran on many issues; in fact, Iran actively funds the Sudanese Armed Forces against the RSF, and ISIS has opposed Iran since its founding. However, there are at least two shared goals between these groups. Some of those two things are:
The destruction of Israel (and by extension the West)
The subjugation and enslavement of Africans
Activism has become a branding game, and shedding light on Arab Muslim slave traders enslaving Black Africans is not on brand. We can talk about how bad things are as much as we can tie it to Western imperialism and economic colonization, which are real things. As soon as it looks like the blame shifts to other things, like Arab colonialism, the 1400+ year Arab imperialism, and the Arab slave trade of Africans, we skip over it.
For those who are simply dishonest, skipping over it will continue to be the modus operandi. For those truly wanting to change the world for the better, this unnatural alliance will inevitably lead them to discover these truths for themselves. Africa is indeed not yet liberated, and though there are a lot of internal reasons for that, her biggest external obstacle is Islam.
But even amid the chaos, G-d is in control. He will use this fake solidarity to shake His people out of slumber.
Some are awake already…
Very powerful essay, Joshua. This issue needs MUCH more awareness in the West.
Thank you, Joshua, for always trying to educate, open eyes, and provoke dialogue. I've learned so much from you!