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“The epicentre of global inhumanity.” That is how the UN’s humanitarian chief, Tom Fletcher, now describes El Fasher, Darfur. New satellite analysis of Sudan reveals what investigators claim are unmistakable signs of mass killing. There have been reports of fires, graves and rust-red scars on the earth, patches of ground stained with human blood. It feels as though all four horsemen of the Apocalypse - war, famine, death and conquest - are riding through Sudan at once. Yet this catastrophe has unfolded largely unnoticed by the wider world. Since April 2023, the latest conflict has claimed an estimated 150,000 lives. More than 12 million people have been driven from their homes, over half of them children. It is chilling to think that violence on earth can be so extreme that it leaves a mark visible from the heavens. I cannot help but be reminded of a moment in the book of Genesis, when God comes down to earth and asks Cain “Where is your brother?” Cain knows exactly where Abel is - he has just killed him. But he deflects, answering the question with one of his own: “Am I my brother’s keeper?” The cold indifference to the death of his brother, the defiance of talking back to God, the feigning of ignorance and shunning of responsibility only compound Cain’s guilt. God declares: “Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.” When we turn away, when we change the channel, when we decide that a conflict is too far away or too complicated for us to care about, the ground does not forget. It bears witness to the injustice. Its stain can be seen from space. The blood cries out to God from the ground, and God turns to us and asks: “Where is your brother?” Whether we like it or not, we are our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers. The people of Darfur — mothers, children, families — are not strangers to be filed away under “foreign affairs”. Their cries, heard through the silent testimony of a satellite image, call us to heed our responsibility. This week the government presents its new asylum and immigration strategy – it’s an area I am very interested in. The strategy is designed to be more robust, to deter migrants from fleeing towards the UK. But the ��ѿ��ý Secretary’s plans contain a seed of hope for those suffering in Sudan, with the promise of community sponsorship. My work means every day I see the impact safe and legal routes have - they’ve already saved the lives of thousands of Ukrainian, Syrian and Afghan brothers and sisters fleeing war. I pose the question - is it now time to now extend our hospitality and compassion to some of those fleeing violence in Sudan?