AI Firm Reveals State-Linked Campaign Targeting Sudan Critics
Anthropic disclosed a sophisticated influence operation allegedly linked to UAE officials, targeting UN experts and the Muslim Brotherhood amid the ongoing Sudan conflict.
Anthropic has disclosed that it detected and disrupted a large-scale influence operation allegedly linked to the United Arab Emirates government. According to the AI company’s report, the campaign targeted the Muslim Brotherhood and United Nations experts who have been critical of Abu Dhabi’s alleged role in the war in Sudan. The firm stated it uncovered the activity with high confidence, describing it as a coordinated effort to shape narratives around the conflict.
The operation reportedly utilized the company’s Claude chatbot to generate a wide array of materials, including advocacy documents, social media content, and official testimonies. Anthropic said the campaign aimed to create a coordinated transatlantic and regional effort to dismantle the Muslim Brotherhood, a group founded in Egypt in 1928. The company noted that the operation involved the creation of hundreds of fake social media accounts to amplify these messages.
Targeting International Accountability Mechanisms
A significant portion of the activity focused on undermining the credibility of UN special rapporteurs who had criticized the UAE’s conduct in Sudan. Anthropic described these as counter-accountability dossiers designed to discredit independent investigators. Additionally, the report alleged that the operation appropriated the identity of a genuine Sudanese human rights organization to draft testimony for named individuals. This strategy aimed to ensure that materials serving a party to the conflict reached UN bodies as if they were from independent local witnesses, rather than state messaging.
The company stated that the operation also ghost-wrote official testimonies intended for delivery at the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Council. These drafts were created under specific restrictions that prevented any mention of the UAE within the text. While Anthropic confirmed the existence of these efforts, it could not determine whether the documents ultimately reached their intended audiences or influenced policy decisions. The UAE did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the allegations.
Context of the Sudanese Conflict
The revelations come as Sudan continues to grapple with one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises. Since the war began in April 2023, estimates suggest that more than 200,000 people have been killed, with millions displaced. The conflict between the army and the Rapid Support Forces has triggered widespread hunger and displacement across Africa’s third-largest country. UN experts have repeatedly accused the UAE of supporting the RSF, allegations that Abu Dhabi consistently denies.
Diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis have stalled as fighting escalates on multiple fronts. Recent reports indicate that private entities and recruiters operating from countries including the UAE and Colombia have used transit locations in Chad, Libya, and Somalia to facilitate the delivery of personnel and weapons to the RSF. This context underscores the complexity of the conflict and the significant external interests involved in the region.
Diplomatic Stalemate at Security Council
Simultaneously, the UN Security Council is engaged in a contentious debate over the scope of arms embargoes in Sudan. The council recently renewed its arms embargo on western Darfur for another month, maintaining existing restrictions. However, the US-led push to widen the measure to cover the entire country has faced strong opposition from Russia. Moscow has signaled that it will not allow any broadening of the restrictions, aligning itself with the Sudanese army in its conflict with the RSF.
US officials have argued that the current embargo is outdated and insufficient to address the realities of the war. They contend that extending the embargo nationwide could help curb the flow of weapons and encourage a political settlement. Russia, a permanent member with veto power, has firmly rejected this approach, viewing broader sanctions as an overreach. This diplomatic impasse highlights the deep divisions within the international community regarding how to respond to the escalating violence in Sudan.
