Sudan is currently being ravaged by a bloody conflict with international implications.

From Reuters. A conflict in Sudan that erupted on April 15 has killed hundreds of people, driven more than 100,000 to flee across the borders and displaced hundreds of thousands inside the country where many already relied on international aid before fighting began.

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WHAT TRIGGERED THE VIOLENCE?

Tension had been building for months between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which together toppled a civilian government in an October 2021 coup.

The friction was brought to a head by an internationally-backed plan to launch a new transition with civilian parties. …

Both the army and the RSF were required to cede power under the plan and two issues proved especially contentious. One was the timetable for the RSF to be integrated into the regular armed forces. A second was the chain of command between the army and RSF leaders and the question of civilian oversight.

When fighting broke out, both sides blamed the other for provoking the violence. …

WHO ARE THE MAIN PLAYERS ON THE GROUND?

The protagonists in the power struggle are General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, head of the army and leader of Sudan’s ruling council since 2019, and his deputy on the council, RSF leader General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly known as Hemedti.

As the plan for a new transition developed, Hemedti aligned himself more closely with civilian parties from a coalition, the Forces for Freedom and Change (FFC), that shared power with the military. …

Diplomats and analysts said this was part of a strategy by Hemedti to transform himself into a statesman and cement his position at the centre of power. …

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

The popular uprising had raised hopes that Sudan and its population of 46 million could emerge from decades of autocracy, internal conflict and economic isolation. …

The current fighting, centred on one of Africa’s largest urban areas, could not only destroy those hopes but destabilise a volatile region bordering the Sahel, the Red Sea and the Horn of Africa. …

WHAT’S THE ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL ACTORS?

Western powers, including the United States, had swung behind a transition towards democratic elections. … They suspended financial support following the coup, then backed the plan for the new transition and a civilian government. …

Burhan and Hemedti both developed close ties to Saudi Arabia after sending troops to participate in the Saudi-led operation in Yemen. Hemedti has struck up relations with other foreign powers including the UAE and Russia. …

WHAT ARE THE SCENARIOS?

International parties have called for humanitarian ceasefires and a return to dialogue, but there have been few signs of compromise from the warring factions despite a lull in fighting that allowed foreign nations to extract diplomats and citizens. Sudanese citizens, meanwhile, have flooded out of the capital area. …

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(Excerpt from Reuters. Photo Credit: Abdulmonam Eassa/Getty Images)