An informative guide to understanding what's happening in Sudan. I do not claim ownership of any multimedia referenced in this book-- attribution and sources provided as always.
Astoria E Greene
Officially 'Republic of Sudan', it is a country located in North-Eastern Africa. Prior to the secession of South Sudan in 2011, it was the largest African country, with a surface area representing 8 percent of the African continent, and almost 2 percent of the world's land area. Currently it is the third largest country in Africa, behind Algeria and Congo. Sudan borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Egypt to the north, Eritrea to the northeast, Ethiopia to the southeast, Libya to the northwest, South Sudan to the south, and the Red Sea.
The Sudanese flag consists of a green triangle to the left of three horizontal red, white, and black stripes, with the red being at the top. As of 2022, Sudan has a population of 45.7 million persons. The main languages in Sudan are Arabic and English.
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Continental map of Africa highlighting Sudan. Source: WorldAtlas.com
2. SAF (group, military)
Acronym for Sudanese Armed Forces, and they are the de-facto military forces of the Republic of Sudan. The SAF is headed by Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. Estimated to have ~200,000 personnel and tactical advantage of airforce. SAF currently control the relative northern regions and eastern regions of Sudan. They are backed by Egypt on an international stage, but have limited weapons supply from allies. On an internal level, SAF is ultimately considered the lesser of two evils.
3. RSF (group, paramilitary)
Acronymn for Rapid Support Forces. The RSF originated from the Janjaweed, Arab tribal militias armed by al-Bashir in 2003 to fight against African rebel groups in Darfur and carried out the 2003 genocide. The RSF is headed by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, otherwise known as Hemidti. Estimated to have 100,000 - 150,000 troops, the RSF is currently winning the ground fight in Khartoum and control 4 out of 5 states in Darfur. They are backed by the United Arab Emirates on an international stage, and have steady weapons supply and diverse financial profile with critical assets in UAE and Russia.
4. Darfur (region)
Its Arabic translation being "Land of the fur" Darfur is the westernmost portion of Sudan. It covers and area approximately the size of Spain. As of 2017, the population in Darfur sits at approximately 9.241 million persons.
5. Darfur Genocide (2003 - 2005)
The Darfur genocide began in 2003 and was carried out by the Sudanese government in cooperation with the Janjaweed forces (later to be known as the RSF). Together, they systematically depopulated land inhabited by the Masalit, Fur, and Zaghawa communities through forced displacement and violent attacks on civilians. The conflict resulted in ~300,000 civilian deaths, and 2.7 million civilians displaced between 2003 and 2008. (Note: While large-scale government attacks on civilians declined after 2005, the violence continued on a smaller scale for years.)
6. Khartoum (city)
Khartoum is the executive capital city of the Republic of Sudan, situated just south of the junction of the Blue and White Nile rivers. It is the largest urban area in Sudan, and a center of commerce as well as government. On April 15, 2023, war between SAF and RSF erupted in Khartoum.
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Segmented map of Sudan and its regions. Source: WorldAtlas.com.
Written by Astoria Greene [27 February 2024]
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Sources
"Genocide in Darfur." Holocaust Museum Houston, 3 Aug. 2023, hmh.org/library/research/genocide-in-darfur-guide/.
