Brian Steidle - Darfur

Darfur

In September 2004, at the age of 27, Steidle accepted an assignment as one of three U.S. military observers for the African Union in the Darfur region of western Sudan. His role was to monitor the cease fire between the two main rebel groups and the Sudanese Government. Additional roles included advising the AU on US personnel, operations, logistics and intelligence. Steidle witnessed the murders of thousands of people, but was not permitted to intervene, though he photographed what he witnessed. After his 13-month contract in Sudan was completed, Brian resigned the position and returned to the United States to speak out about what he saw.

Steidle returned to Chad in 2006 to further document and publicize the events taking place there. Steidle wrote of his experiences in Darfur in his book The Devil Came on Horseback, a reference to the Janjaweed faction that has been responsible for much of the genocide in Darfur. An award winning and Emmy nominated documentary film of the same title was also produced about Steidle's story. The film is a Break Thru Films production in association with Global Grassroots and Three Generations. The film received significant charitable funding including grants from the Save Darfur Coalition and the Sundance Film Festival. Steidle appears throughout the film, narrating what he witnessed and interviewing survivors in Darfur.

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