ACTION ALERT: Call to Block US Arms Sales
Fueling Sudan’s Catastrophe
Peace Action
(June 8, 2025) — Are you feeling overwhelmed by the flood of crises vying for our attention? If so, you’re not alone. We often feel like we’re all drinking from a firehose — trying to keep up with urgent calls for justice on every issue, and across the globe. In fact, Peace Action has used the “firehose” metaphor in emails to you before, but it’s never felt more true than it does today.
Right now, one of the largest and least-reported humanitarian emergencies is unfolding in Sudan. The US is one of the main outside actors fueling this crisis with arms and military support for the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The UN says the UAE is arming and supporting one of the groups engaging in the worst human rights abuses — the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
In response, THIS WEEK, we expect members of the Senate to use their power to try to block a $3.5 billion US arms sale to the UAE and Qatar — arms that could be used in the violence and human rights abuses. We can have a positive impact on this crisis by blocking these arms, but only if we act now.
If all this wasn’t bad enough, these deals are part of Trump’s corrupt, kleptocratic authoritarianism. The UAE is funneling $2 Billion into the Trump family crypto venture, and Qatar … well, you know about Qatar’s gift of an Air Force One plane that Trump thinks he gets to keep when he leaves office. That’s why this package of legislation includes disapproving of a massive weapons deal that is also set to go to Qatar, which is trying to gain further US favor through arms investments.
Peace Action and the wider peace and justice community have been rightly focused on the oppression and suffering in Gaza. There are many reasons for that, as you are well aware, starting with the direct support of war crimes and ethnic cleansing by the US. But the scale of the Sudan crisis is staggering in terms of the sheer number of human lives impacted. lf you’re less familiar with what’s going on in Sudan, here are some key things to keep in mind:
- Over30 million people—two-thirds of Sudan’s population—need humanitarian assistance this year, including 16 million children.
- Sudan now has the world’s largest internal displacement crisis: more than 12 million people have been forced to flee their homes, and 4 million have crossed borders as refugees.
- Famine is spreading fast.Roughly 25 million people are facing acute food insecurity, and Sudan has more people on the brink of starvation than anywhere else on Earth.
- The violence is brutal and personal: systematic sexual violence, abductions, and killings — especially against women and children — are being carried out by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The RSF’s reign of terror is being fueled by weapons and support from the UAE. Despite public denials, credible investigations — including by Amnesty International and the US Treasury Department — show that arms, drones, and funding are flowing from the UAE to the RSF, enabling war crimes and ethnic cleansing. In January, the US even sanctioned seven Emirati companies for supplying the RSF.
It’s easy to feel powerless when the rapid-fire depressing headlines keep coming. But was you know, when we raise our voices together we can have an impact. Blocking these arms sales is a concrete way to stop US complicity in the world’s most under-reported humanitarian disaster.
If you have a moment, we’d like to ask you to do one more thing since this crisis is flying under the radar. Could you forward this alert to your network of “political friends” or groups? Help us break through the silence.
Thank you for standing with the people of Sudan — when it matters most.
Thank you for all you do for peace,
The Peace Action Rapid Response Team
THE LETTER
As a voting constituent and a member of Peace Action, I am writing today to urge you to vote YES on S.J.Res.51, S.J.Res.52, S.J.Res.53, and S.J.Res.54 — the Joint Resolutions of Disapproval by Senator Chris Murphy et. al. that would block more than $3.5 billion in proposed arms sales to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar.
As you know, Sudan is enduring one of the largest and least-reported humanitarian crises in the world. The United States must not be complicit in fueling this catastrophe by providing weapons that could be used in ongoing violence and human rights abuses. The UN, Amnesty International, and the US Treasury Dept. have all found credible evidence that the UAE is funneling arms to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group responsible for war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and systematic violence against civilians—especially women and children.
Here the things making me so concerned about this crisis:
- Over 30 million people—two-thirds of Sudan’s population—need humanitarian assistance this year, including 16 million children.
- Sudan now has the world’s largest internal displacement crisis: more than 12 million people have been forced to flee their homes, and 3 million have crossed borders as refugees.
- Famine is spreading fast. Over 26 million people are facing acute food insecurity, and Sudan has more people on the brink of starvation than anywhere else on Earth.
- The RSF’s reign of terror is fueled by weapons and support from the UAE, despite public denials. In January, the US sanctioned seven Emirati companies for supplying the RSF.
I urge you to support these resolutions and help stop US complicity in Sudan’s suffering. Please vote YES on S.J.Res.51, S.J.Res.52, S.J.Res.53, and S.J.Res.54.
Thank you for anything you can do to address this humanitarian nightmare.
