Sudan's Ongoing War: U.S. Senator-Elect Challenges UAE Deals as 21 Senators Demand Arms Restrictions

Sudanese refugees in Adré, Chad, January 2025.

WASHINGTON. November 10, 2026.

Sudan's devastating war began on April 15, 2023. More than three and a half years later, the fighting continues.

Now, political pressure is growing in Washington over foreign weapons reaching Sudan's Rapid Support Forces.

On October 20, 2026, Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed told ABC News that the United States should reconsider deals with countries including the United Arab Emirates. He accused the UAE of involvement in genocide in Sudan.

El-Sayed won Michigan's Senate election on November 3. He has not yet taken office.

The scale of the atrocities is documented.

Between April and November 2023, the Rapid Support Forces and allied militias carried out deadly attacks in El Geneina, West Darfur. A United Nations panel cited estimates of ten thousand to fifteen thousand people killed.

In October 2025, the United Nations documented more than six thousand killings during the first three days of the RSF offensive on El Fasher.

On January 7, 2025, the U.S. State Department formally determined that the RSF and allied militias had committed genocide.

Amnesty International also identified Chinese-made weapons in Sudan that it concluded were almost certainly supplied through the UAE.

The UAE denies supplying weapons to the warring parties.

UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Photograph taken in Washington in May 2017.

On August 3, 2026, Senator Chris Van Hollen and twenty other U.S. senators called for restrictions on certain American arms sales to the UAE and other external actors fueling the conflict.

Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen, who led the congressional letter concerning UAE arms sales.]

Their demand has not itself become an arms embargo.

With Sudan's war still ongoing, the questions are urgent.

Will the international community stop weapons from reaching those responsible for atrocities?

And will the victims of Sudan's war finally see justice and accountability?

Photo Credits and Image Sources

Photo 1 — Sudanese Refugees

Photographer: Russell Watkins / UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office.

Location: Adré, Chad. January 24, 2025.

License: Creative Commons Attribution 2.0.

Image:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Foreign_Secretary_David_Lammy_meets_Sudanese_refugees_in_Chad_in_the_border_town_of_Adre_on_24_January_2025_-_13.jpg

Photo 2 — Abdul El-Sayed

Photographer: Kenneth C. Zirkel.

Date: February 3, 2025.

License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0.

Image:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abdul_El-Sayed.jpg

Photo 3 — Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan

Photographer: U.S. Air Force Technical Sergeant Brigitte N. Brantley / U.S. Department of Defense.

Date: May 15, 2017.

License: Creative Commons Attribution 2.0.

Image:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mohammed_bin_Zayed_portrait.jpg

Photo 4 — Senator Chris Van Hollen

Photographer: U.S. Senate Photographic Studio.

Date: April 6, 2017.

License: Public domain.

Image:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chris_Van_Hollen_official_portrait_115th_Congress.jpg

Creative Commons License Links

CC BY 2.0:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

CC BY-SA 4.0:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Photographs are provided for editorial identification and illustration. They do not independently establish responsibility for atrocities or weapons transfers. Credit the original photographers and indicate any image modifications as required by their licenses.

Sudan War: Verified Timeline and Additional Facts

April 15, 2023 — War begins between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces.

April to November 2023 — In El Geneina, West Darfur, the RSF and allied militias carry out a campaign of ethnic attacks, mass killings and forced displacement. Violence peaks in June. A United Nations panel later cites intelligence estimates of ten thousand to fifteen thousand people killed in the city.

January 7, 2025 — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken formally determines that the RSF and allied militias have committed genocide.

May 8, 2025 — Amnesty International reports that Chinese-made guided bombs and howitzers used in Sudan were almost certainly re-exported through the UAE. The UAE rejects the findings.

October 25 to 27, 2025 — United Nations investigators document more than six thousand killings during the RSF offensive on El Fasher. The findings are published on February 13, 2026.

February 10, 2026 — Reuters reports on a camp in Ethiopia used to train RSF fighters. Sources allege UAE financing. Reuters says it could not independently verify the UAE's involvement. The UAE denies involvement in the conflict.

August 3, 2026 — Senator Chris Van Hollen and twenty Senate colleagues urge the State Department to halt certain arms sales to the UAE and other external actors accused of fueling the war.

October 20, 2026 — ABC News publishes Abdul El-Sayed's interview in which he calls for reconsidering U.S. deals with countries including the UAE.

November 3, 2026 — Abdul El-Sayed wins the U.S. Senate election in Michigan.

November 10, 2026 — Sudan's war remains ongoing.

Important clarification: The El Geneina and El Fasher death figures are location-specific estimates and findings. They should not be presented as a complete national RSF death toll or simply added together to produce one.

Key People and Their Official Roles

Abdul El-Sayed — Democratic senator-elect for Michigan. Publicly questioned U.S. deals with the UAE in an ABC News interview on October 20, 2026.

Chris Van Hollen — Democratic U.S. senator from Maryland and member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Led the August 3, 2026 letter.

Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan — President of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Abu Dhabi. The UAE government denies supplying weapons to either side of Sudan's war. The cited evidence does not establish his personal criminal responsibility.

John Cornyn — Republican U.S. senator from Texas. Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and its Africa and Global Health Policy Subcommittee. He was not among the signatories to the August 3 letter.

The 21 Signatories to the August 3, 2026 Senate Letter

Chris Van Hollen — Maryland, Democrat. Letter leader.

Patty Murray — Washington, Democrat.

Ron Wyden — Oregon, Democrat.

Bernie Sanders — Vermont, Independent.

Jeff Merkley — Oregon, Democrat.

Michael Bennet — Colorado, Democrat.

Brian Schatz — Hawaii, Democrat.

Chris Murphy — Connecticut, Democrat.

Mazie Hirono — Hawaii, Democrat.

Martin Heinrich — New Mexico, Democrat.

Tim Kaine — Virginia, Democrat.

Elizabeth Warren — Massachusetts, Democrat.

Ed Markey — Massachusetts, Democrat.

Tina Smith — Minnesota, Democrat.

Alex Padilla — California, Democrat.

Jon Ossoff — Georgia, Democrat.

Raphael Warnock — Georgia, Democrat.

Peter Welch — Vermont, Democrat.

Adam Schiff — California, Democrat.

Lisa Blunt Rochester — Delaware, Democrat.

Angela Alsobrooks — Maryland, Democrat.

All twenty-one were serving U.S. senators when the letter was sent. Their state and party affiliations are listed as of that date.