U.S. House Passes HR 1939 Sanctions as UN Reports Bridges Destroyed in West Darfur

On Tuesday evening, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the U.S. Engagement in Sudanese Peace Act (HR 1939) to impose sanctions on those obstructing humanitarian access to Sudan, but the United Nations reported that bridges and roads those aid routes depend on were being destroyed faster than legislation could address.

“A sense of relief prevailed in Khartoum's government circles on Wednesday after the Foreign Affairs Committee of the U”

Al-Jazeera Net

The Eastern Herald said the UN reported overnight explosions struck the Ardamata bridge in West Darfur state, linking the city of El Geneina to the Chadian border, while two additional bridges along the road connecting Kadugli and Dilling were destroyed over the preceding weekend.

Al-Jazeera Net

In New York, UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq warned that humanitarian partners told the UN there would be no viable alternative routes once the rainy season fully sets in, as the rainy season typically renders unpaved roads impassable for weeks or months.

The bill that cleared the House with bipartisan support still mandates sanctions on individuals and entities found to have committed war crimes or genocide in Sudan since April 2023, or who have obstructed humanitarian assistance, and it extends the position of special envoy for Sudan through December 2029.

The Eastern Herald framed the timing as a collision between a U.S. law assuming functioning infrastructure for monitored humanitarian corridors and a ground reality where that infrastructure is being deliberately dismantled.

Sudan Horizon reported that the most dangerous clauses in HR1939, concerning delegitimizing the Sudanese government and not recognizing its representation at the United Nations or diplomatic missions, were completely removed before the vote.

Sudan Horizon said the remaining clauses did not deviate from the general pattern of previous congressional resolutions on Sudan and were largely inspired by the provisions of the 2002 Sudan Peace Act, while also saying the bill still faces a long legislative process before it can be signed by President Trump and enter into force.

Dabanga Radio TV Online

Al Jazeera Net described a sense of relief in Khartoum after the Foreign Affairs Committee removed the delegitimizing provisions in full before adoption, and said a majority of members voted in favor of the bill titled the U.S. Engagement in Sudanese Peace Act.

Al Jazeera Net added that the bill states the United States should use its influence within the United Nations to help deploy and support a force affiliated with the United Nations or the African Union, or a multinational force, to operate inside Sudan.

The Eastern Herald similarly said the quiet narrowing of the bill’s scope mattered because it reflected the limits of what Washington was prepared to do to the government in Khartoum, even as Congress votes in theory to hold perpetrators of atrocities accountable.

The bill passed by the House, as described by the Eastern Herald, mandates sanctions against individuals and entities found to have committed war crimes or genocide in Sudan since April 2023 or who have obstructed humanitarian assistance, and it calls for expanding an arms embargo to cover all of Sudan.

“Major Clauses in the “Sudan Peace Engagement Act” removed Washington – Mariam Abashar The US House of Representatives passed the Sudan Peace Engagement Act (HR1939) on Tuesday evening”

Sudan Horizon

The Eastern Herald also said the legislation supports monitoring any future ceasefire and extends the position of special envoy for Sudan through December 2029, while authorizing the State Department to support the deployment of a multinational protection force.

In Khartoum, Al Jazeera Net said the bill provides that the Secretary of State and the Secretary of the Treasury, jointly, and within 90 days from the date of enactment, shall conduct a comprehensive review to determine whether any of the parties to the war in Sudan meets the criteria to be designated as a globally designated terrorist entity.

Al Jazeera Net further said the project stressed the need to continue listing the Rapid Support Forces among the entities subject to American sanctions and urged the United Nations to expand the current arms embargo imposed on Darfur to cover all of Sudan.

The Eastern Herald warned that the destruction of paved bridge infrastructure before the rainy season intensifies closes windows that cannot easily be reopened for the more than 30 million people across Sudan who require humanitarian assistance, according to UN figures.