Sudan’s complex humanitarian crisis is rooted in decades of internal conflict, political instability, extreme weather events and poor economic conditions that have contributed to widespread food insecurity, malnutrition and a lack of basic services, especially health services. While these issues have resulted in millions of internally displaced Sudanese, Sudan also hosts refugees from South Sudan and Ethiopia.
In their Sudan Humanitarian Snapshot released on April 5, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said, “Localized conflict and insecurity continue to displace thousands of people and disrupt lives in parts of Sudan.”
On April 5, 2023, Sudan’s military leaders and a coalition of civilian groups postponed the signing of a deal that was to begin a political transition to democracy. Instead, fighting and protests increased. The conflict has shifted from a military-civilian battle to one between “the country’s de facto leader, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane, head of the army and author of the October 25, 2021 coup, and his second in command, General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, known as ‘Hemedti,’ who heads the ex-militiamen of the Darfur war and is now grouped into the RSF.”
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) origins are rooted in the Janjaweed militia that carried out ethnic cleansing in Darfur. The RSF seems to be hiding in urban areas, so much of the conflict is happening in densely populated areas and is impacting civilians.
Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said on April 30 that two weeks after the fighting began, “the humanitarian situation is reaching breaking point.”
Many countries have called for a ceasefire and are trying to extract their citizens.
Despite saying they would extend a truce another three days, the warring sides intensified their fighting on May 1 with airstrikes hitting Sudan’s capital, Khartoum. According to a top UN official, Sudan’s warring generals have agreed to send representatives for negotiations. As of May 5, this has not yet happened.
(Photo: People fleeing violence in Sudan. Credit: USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance Lead via Twitter)
Located in northeast Africa, Sudan lies at the intersection of the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa. It borders the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Libya and South Sudan. Sudan has faced numerous historic issues that have left a legacy in the country. The issues stem from exploitation after it was colonized by Britain and Egypt in the late 19th century. During this period, Sudanese people were subjected to various forms of exploitation, including forced labor, land confiscation and cultural suppression.
Over the past few decades, Sudan has been plagued by multiple civil wars. The First Sudanese Civil War was from 1955-1972, and about half a million people were killed. Despite a peace agreement in 1972, tensions continued. The Second Sudanese Civil War (and the longest of these conflicts) was fought from 1983 to 2005 between the government and the southern rebels, who were fighting for greater autonomy and control over resources. This conflict lasted for more than 20 years and resulted in the deaths of an estimated two million people. The war also led to the independence of South Sudan in 2011.
In 2003, the Darfur genocide began when government-backed militias targeted non-Arab civilians in the Darfur region. This conflict resulted in the displacement of millions of people and the deaths of hundreds of thousands. While the conflict was technically resolved with a peace deal in 2020, violence in the area continues today.
Colonel Omar al-Bashir, who carried out a military coup in 1989 and appointed himself president in 1993, was ousted by the army in 2019.
Following this, a “power-sharing deal with the civilians who led the protests against Bashir” was in progress. The goal was to help transition Sudan to a democratic government, but this was interrupted by another coup in October 2021.
In October 2021, Sudan’s military, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, seized power from a transitional government. Political instability followed the military takeover in October. Additionally, a socioeconomic crisis – characterized by high inflation rates and currency depreciation and food insecurity – affected nearly a quarter of the population. Intercommunal clashes and violence in some areas of the country, especially in the Darfur and Kordofan regions, also contributed to the high numbers of internal and cross-border displacements. Billions of dollars in international support and debt relief were paused after the 2021 coup, worsening the economic crisis and humanitarian situation in the country.
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