Ranya Elfil hasn’t been sleeping well, and she says she is not the only one.
Across the Sudanese community in Toronto, the bloody and violent events in the African nation have plagued people with waking thoughts and nightmares.
“I don’t think anyone is getting any sleep,” Elfil, president of the Mississauga Sudanese Canadian Cultural Association, told Global News.
“And even if you do, it is because you crash because it has been three days since you got any kind of sleep. And you wake up really jolted in the middle of the night.”
Clashes began in Sudan on April 15, amid plans to transfer control of the country to a civilian government. Fighting broke out between forces under the command of the country’s top two generals, with Sudanese Canadians terrified for family members trapped in the middle.
“I’m worried about my family, I am trying to figure out how I can help, I am also trying to stay optimistic for them — I am hopeful that this will end soon,” Azza Taha, another Sudanese Canadian who spoke to Global News, said.
She lamented the apparent lack of widespread public concern about the conflict, questioning “why people don’t care.”
Canada’s foreign minister said on Tuesday that the country has worked “proactively” to respond to the ongoing crisis in Sudan, including helping Canadians trapped in the country and joining in the direct international calls for a ceasefire.
The federal government announced a series of immigration supports for Sudanese nationals in Canada, including waiving fees for work and student visa extensions. Canadian border officials will also not return any Sudanese nationals until the situation changes.
But the situation is overwhelming for the Toronto-based community, Elfin said. Stories have trickled back home as family and friends run short of cash, medicine and cellphones stop working amidst the conflict.
Difficult conditions on the ground, potentially dangerous attempts to be evacuated and infirm or immobile relatives make the situation more stressful still, she said.
“I don’t think (anyone) is choosing to stay in this situation. It is that they are trapped because of one reason or another,” Elfil said.
One glimmer of light in the dark is a sense of purpose galvanizing Sudanese Canadians across the Greater Toronto Area.
“It’s also this drive that I see across the community to do something,” Elfin said. “We want to be able to bring our families at some point to Canada, if we can.”
— with files from Global News’ Sean Boynton, Talha Hashmani
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