Sao Paulo
Considered one of the most unstable countries in the world, Sudan has a long history of armed conflict and military infighting. Fresh fighting has erupted in recent days, killing at least 550 people and stoking fears of an unprecedented humanitarian crisis across the region.
Clashes began on the 15th between regular army forces led by General Fatah alBurhan and the paramilitary group RSF (Rapid Support Forces, in Portuguese), also commanded by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti.
Together they overthrew Omar al Bashir’s 30year dictatorship in 2019. Two years later, they took part in a coup that ended the transition to a democratic regime. The generals in charge of the country began to disagree over the involvement of paramilitaries in the army and the formation of a new government, fueling rumors of armed clashes that erupted in April.
The fighting in Sudan is a remnant of the colonial era that militarized and divided the country, according to Lucas de Oliveira Ramos, a specialist in security dynamics in Africa and a PhD student in international relations.
Learn more about the history of Sudan below.
How was the process of colonizing the country?
Located in northeastern Africa, Sudan was a colony of the United Kingdom and neighboring Egypt in an arrangement believed to be rare called “condominium”. It was founded in 1899. In practice, the Europeans indirectly controlled the Sudanese territory and supported the Egyptian kings who administered the territory.
According to Lucas Ramos, the people of Northern Sudan received arms from the British Crown in exchange for mineral resources. The process began with the formation of the Sudanese elites, which by that time were already militarized and patrimonial.
Why has the North developed more than the South?
Inequality is also a legacy of the colonial era. According to Ramos, the British Crown funded sedentary groups established on the banks of the Nile in the north, which survived on pastoral activities.
In the south, the groups were nomadic and received no resources. “In the days of colonization, it was common for the metropolises to elect a group to act as an intermediary between the crown and the local population,” he says.
The result was the secession of the South, which received insignificant investment and had little political participation, stimulating local discontent. The concentration of the elite in Khartoum, the current capital of Sudan, deepened regional differences.
How did Sudan become independent?
As a result of World War II, Sudan became independent in 1956. Economically weakened by the conflict, European countries allotted fewer resources to the colonies and gradually lost control of the territories.
The participation of Sudanese troops alongside the allies in World War II accelerated the emancipation process as part of recognition for efforts in combat, says Professor Alexandre Dos Santos of Politics and History of the African Continent at the PUCRJ’s Institute of International Relations.
But the process was not peaceful. There were conflicts between mainland forces and rebels influenced by Muhammad Ahmad (1844 1885) who waged an anticolonial war against Ottoman and Egyptian military rule in the 19th century.
What form of government does Sudan have?
Officially, the current form of government in Sudan is presidentialism. But since independence, the country has been ruled by dictators and autocratic leaders accused of human rights violations.
The dictator Omar alBashir remained in power longer. He led a military coup against an elected government in 1989. 30 years later he was overthrown by the armed forces, which installed a prodemocracy interim government.
“Sudan’s politics are oscillating. They always alternate between popular revolutions that overthrow dictators and military coups that manage to return to power,” says Santos.
In 2021, a military coup on the grounds of restoring order ended the transition to the democratic regime installed after the alBashir regime. The clashes that began last month characterize an attempted coup within the coup.
How many civil wars has Sudan had?
Sudan has had two long civil wars with clashes between forces from the north and south of the country.
The first began in 1955 when Southern leaders called for greater regional autonomy. According to Santos, in the process of transition to independence in 1956, the British crown did not take into account the political divisions in the African country and only negotiated with representatives from the north, which led to revolts.
The agreement that ended the fighting in 1972 collapsed, leading to the outbreak of a new NorthSouth conflict from 1983 to 2005. This conflict is considered one of the deadliest of the late 20th century. Estimates range from 1 million to 2.5 million people killed, mostly civilians.
Are there ethnic or religious conflicts in Sudan?
Yes. The second Sudanese civil war (19832005), for example, began when the Muslim government in the north tried to enforce Sharia, traditional Islamic law, across the country, including in the south where Christians are concentrated.
Conflicts between the two parties are often justified in terms of ethnic and religious differences in Sudan, with the south being predominantly Christian and the north Muslim. However, experts consider it necessary to take social and economic inequalities into account.
When was Sudan divided?
After long periods of civil war, South Sudan became a state in 2011 after the people voted in a referendum for the territory’s independence. Since then, the African nation has struggled with several infrastructure and administrative problems today it is one of the poorest countries in the world. It also relies on resources and technology from its neighbor to the north.
How does the history of Sudan relate to the current conflict?
The current conflict is the result of a militarized, violent and divided society. The Rapid Support Forces were born in a clash in the southern region of the country. The paramilitary group descends from the socalled Janjaweed militias, accused of committing atrocities in the Darfur region in the 2000s. At that time, soldiers were called up by thendictator Omar alBashir to put down a rebellion led by nonArab peoples. An estimated 300,000 people were killed in the conflict.
Over time, the group grew and began to be used as border guards, mainly to suppress irregular migration. In 2017, legislation was passed legitimizing the paramilitary group as an independent security force. Then, in 2019, after the dictator was overthrown, General Hemedti signed a powersharing agreement that made him the number two commander in Sudan.
Number one is General alBurhan, who controls the Sudanese army.
What is the current status of the conflict?
Since the fighting began, air and artillery strikes have killed at least 550 people and injured nearly 4,900 as of this Thursday (4). The offensives also destroyed hospitals and restricted food distribution a third of the population of 46 million people were already dependent on humanitarian aid.
The World Health Organization said last week only 16% of health facilities in Khartoum were functioning and forecast “many more deaths” from disease and lack of food, water and medical supplies. Treatment for an estimated 50,000 children with acute malnutrition has been halted, and the hospitals that remain operational face shortages of utilities, electricity and water.
How many Brazilians live in Sudan?
Itamaraty informed in a note to the Sheet on Tuesday (2) that 24 of the 27 Brazilians who were in Sudan have already left the territory; the others have been relocated to areas of lower relative risk and are awaiting opportunities to leave the country as well.
Chinese network CCTV reported that the People’s Liberation Army Navy ship Weishanhu brought six Brazilians from Sudan to the port of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia late in the week.
When asked about the operation, Itamaraty said it is working with various international partners, including the UN, Spain, Sweden, France, China and Saudi Arabia.