Executive Summary Sudan is experiencing the world’s largest humanitarian catastrophe, with over twelve million displaced people, collapsing state institutions, and mass atrocities returning to Darfur. What began in April 2023 as a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has evolved into a full-scale state collapse with far-reaching regional consequences. For Europe, Sudan’s implosion threatens to accelerate irregular migration, destabilize partners in North Africa and the Horn of Africa, and expand the influence of malign actors such as Russia, Iran, and extremist networks. For Israel, instability along Sudan’s Red Sea coast endangers maritime security, fuels weapons smuggling, and undermines the strategic promise of the Abraham Accords. Despite these shared interests, European and Israeli responses have remained largely uncoordinated. This paper argues that closer Europe–Israel cooperation can improve humanitarian access, reinforce political mediation, and strengthen Red Sea security. Europe brings diplomatic weight, financial capacity, and reconstruction tools; Israel contributes intelligence, logistics, and regional operational experience. Three priority areas for joint action emerge: securing humanitarian corridors and medical access, supporting a credible path to civilian rule through coordinated diplomacy, and enhancing maritime surveillance to counter weapons trafficking and regional destabilization. Sudan’s eventual normalization with Israel should not be treated as a prerequisite for stabilization, but as a long-term incentive for reintegration into a cooperative regional framework. With European support, normalization could offer Sudan economic, technological, and diplomatic benefits once a legitimate civilian government is restored. Sudan’s war is not only a humanitarian disaster. It is a strategic test. Coordinated European-Israeli engagement can help prevent deeper regional fragmentation, counter hostile external influence, and demonstrate that democratic partnerships can deliver stability in a volatile region. Sudan at the Epicentre of a Regional Crisis Sudan today stands at the epicentre of the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, a tragedy of staggering scale whose implications extend far beyond the borders of a single state. More than twelve million Sudanese have been displaced, over thirty million require urgent assistance, and entire cities lie in ruins. This is not just another African civil war; it is a regional earthquake affecting the Sahel, the Red Sea, and the Mediterranean basin. Sudan also represents a defining test of whether Europe and Israel, two actors whose interests increasingly converge, can cooperate to partially stabilize a conflict that affects both European and Israeli interests. For Europe, Sudan matters for reasons of security, migration, and moral responsibility. For Israel, it matters for reasons of maritime safety, counterterrorism, and the future of the Abraham Accords. For both, Sudan is an arena where their complementary strengths could make a decisive impact. Yet their responses have so far remained parallel rather than coordinated. A War That Became a State Collapse Sudan’s descent into chaos began in April 2023 when a long-simmering power struggle turned violent between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) under General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a heavily armed paramilitary led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti. Their shared role in overthrowing the former regime of Omar al-Bashir gave way to rivalry over control of the country’s political transition, natural resources, and foreign alliances. What followed was catastrophic. The United Nations now describes Sudan as the world’s worst humanitarian emergency. Khartoum and Omdurman have been hollowed out by urban warfare. Darfur again faces mass atrocities reminiscent of the early 2000s. Health systems have collapsed, famine looms across several regions, and militias operate with impunity. The conflict has spilled into Chad, South Sudan, and Ethiopia, threatening to ignite a wider regional crisis. Sudan occupies a uniquely sensitive geopolitical position. It links the Horn of Africa to the Sahel and sits along the Red Sea corridor—a maritime artery essential for European and Israeli trade. Instability in Sudan therefore radiates outward, fuelling migration routes, strengthening transnational extremist networks, and disrupting supply chains that serve both Europe and Israel. Europe’s Hesitant Response Europe has contributed significantly to humanitarian relief, yet its political response has been constrained by competing crises: the war in Ukraine, the war in Gaza, and rising domestic pressures around migration and energy security. The result has been an uneven engagement, generous in aid but limited in diplomatic focus. This hesitancy carries costs. A collapsing Sudan will intensify migratory pressures toward North Africa and the Mediterranean, destabilize key partners such as Egypt and Ethiopia, and create vacuums exploited by actors whose values clash with Europe’s. Russia-linked networks are entrenched in Sudan’s gold trade; Iran seeks leverage along the Red Sea; China continues to deepen its long-term economic footprint. The longer Europe remains fragmented, the more difficult it becomes to shape the post-war landscape. Europe’s interests in Sudan are clear: preventing regional destabilization, reducing irregular migration, and upholding human dignity. But it requires partners to translate these interests into effective action. Israel’s Strategic Stake For Israel, Sudan has moved rapidly from a distant concern to a critical strategic issue. The Red Sea, already destabilized by Houthi attacks and Iranian interference, is essential for Israeli maritime access. Instability along Sudan’s coastline threatens freedom of navigation, increases smuggling and weapons trafficking, and complicates counterterrorism efforts across the region. Sudan was also on the verge of historic rapprochement with Israel. In 2020, the transitional government in Khartoum agreed to join the Abraham Accords. In another timeline, normalization between the two states would already be in place, strengthening Red Sea cooperation and opening avenues for development assistance and investment. That opportunity evaporated after Sudan’s 2021 military coup and the outbreak of war, but it should not be dismissed. A peaceful, civilian-led Sudan would benefit enormously from the economic and technological dividends offered by the Accords. For Israel, Sudan’s eventual normalization would close a strategic arc from the Gulf to East Africa. For Europe, it would anchor Sudan in a cooperative framework aligned with Western interests. An Opening for Europe–Israel Cooperation Sudan’s war has become a microcosm of global competition. Egypt supports the SAF; Gulf actors back elements of the RSF; Russia exploits Sudan’s gold; China invests in infrastructure; Iran tests the limits of instability along the Red Sea. In this fragmented environment, coordination among Europe, Israel, and like-minded partners is essential. Europe brings scale, diplomacy, and reconstruction capacity. Israel brings intelligence, logistics, and technological innovation. Together, they can shape outcomes in ways neither could achieve alone. Three domains stand out: Joint Humanitarian Access and Relief Europe’s humanitarian leadership is indispensable, but aid cannot reach civilians without secure access. This is where Israel’s operational capabilities matter. Israeli intelligence and real-time situational awareness can help map safe corridors for aid convoys. Israeli logistics teams, experienced in crisis response, can support medical stations, water purification, and mobile clinics in areas where state institutions have collapsed. A coordinated European-Israeli approach would improve the survival prospects of millions and demonstrate that democratic actors can deliver real benefits on the ground. Reinforcing Political Mediation and a Path to Civilian Rule Only a political settlement can end Sudan’s war. The African Union leads mediation efforts, but it needs stronger international backing. Europe can provide economic incentives and governance expertise; Israel can help align key regional actors such as Egypt, Kenya, and the UAE, whose influence over Sudan’s factions is decisive. A credible transition roadmap should include security-sector reform, disarmament of militias, and a civilian-led interim authority. It should also offer Sudan a vision of long-term reintegration into the Abraham Accords once stability and legitimate governance are restored. Red Sea Security and Counter-Smuggling Cooperation As instability spreads along the Red Sea, Europe and Israel share urgent interests in ensuring maritime security. Europe’s naval missions, including “Atalanta” and EMASOH (the European Maritime Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz mission), play a vital role, but they can benefit from Israel’s advanced early-warning systems and intelligence on weapons flows linked to Iran and its proxies. Joint surveillance and information-sharing mechanisms would improve interdiction of weapons, reduce the risk of attacks on commercial shipping, and counter the entrenchment of non-state armed groups across the region. In parallel, development initiatives in border regions funded by Europe and supported technologically by Israel could address the structural drivers of migration and trafficking. Conclusion Sudan’s normalization with Israel is not a prerequisite for stabilization, but it remains a powerful long-term incentive. When the war ends and a legitimate civilian government emerges, reactivating the normalization process could provide Sudan with substantial economic and diplomatic benefits. European support would be essential to ensuring that normalization becomes part of Sudan’s reconstruction and reintegration into the international community. For the Abraham Accords themselves, Sudan’s accession would restore momentum and demonstrate that the normalization framework is resilient even in the face of regional upheaval. Exceptional crises require innovative partnerships. Sudan offers a rare chance for Europe and Israel to demonstrate that their cooperation can ease human suffering, strengthen regional resilience, and reinforce the principles that underpin the international order. If Europe and Israel act together, they can help Sudan step back from the edge and perhaps one day rejoin a path of regional integration marked by the spirit of the Abraham Accords. If they do not, Sudan’s implosion will deepen, malign actors will consolidate their influence, and a vital region linking Africa, the Middle East, and Europe will drift further toward instability.