Clashes Between Army and Militias in Sudan: How Can Lasting Peace Be Achieved?
Sudan has a turbulent history from colonial times to the 2019 revolution and is now engulfed in an extensive and complex crisis. The conflict between Sudan’s army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has split the country into two opposing military camps, fracturing its social and political order. Though, this crisis goes beyond a clash between two military commanders; beneath this struggle lies a diverse set of internal actors rooted in ethnicity, ideology, economics, and years of structural inequalities.
From the official army and militias to rebel groups, Islamists, civil institutions, and local tribes-each plays a distinct role in this conflict. Consequently of these rivalries,over 11 million people have been displaced.The threat of famine looms large alongside an unprecedented risk of total state collapse. Recently, massacres and humanitarian disasters in El Fasher by RSF forces have drawn global attention. But which groups are active within Sudan during this crisis?
The Sudanese Armed Forces: The Official Military Upholding Traditional Order
Led by general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Sudan’s army inherits its structure from British-Egyptian colonial rule in the early twentieth century. Sence independence in 1956, it has served as the backbone of central government authority-shaping nearly every military regime or coup d’état throughout modern Sudanese history. In the 2019 revolution against Omar al-Bashir’s regime, it initially allied wiht civilian forces to remove him but soon forged ties with RSF units to curb civilian governance efforts and maintain power.
The army’s goal amid today’s conflict is preserving its monopoly over political-military power by integrating RSF troops into its ranks under controlled terms while reinstating an orderly transition framework.It fields about 130,000 soldiers controlling northern and eastern regions but exerts less influence over Darfur or Khartoum itself.Its main backers include Islamists linked to Bashir’s former government along with eastern tribal factions. From their viewpoint, RSF fighters are “illegal insurgents,” making restoration of central authority essential for ending turmoil.
Rapid Support Forces: From Janjaweed Origins to Political Ambitions
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF), commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo-commonly known as Hemeti-originated from Janjaweed militias active during Darfur’s early-2000s ethnic conflicts that led to major humanitarian crises in western Sudan. Hemeti hails from a prominent Darfuri commercial family who transformed this group into an official paramilitary force by 2013.
Your objectives now include maintaining military autonomy; securing equal political portrayal; controlling gold mines-the financial backbone sustaining their operations-and expanding territorial presence within Khartoum as well as Darfur-Kordofan regions through roughly 100 thousand predominantly Arab-Darfuri fighters under their command.
Though plagued by war crimes allegations-including massacres at El Fasher-and accusations related to illegal gold trade-they continue receiving financial support along with arms supplies from certain regional powers.
While Hemeti publicly supports inclusion within transitional governments going forward he effectively seeks full replacement or dominance over traditional armed forces establishing himself as preeminent political power among factions within Sudan’s fractured landscape.
Darfur Rebel Groups: Ethnic Justice & Autonomy Demands
Alongside these primary actors stand influential rebel movements originating during early-2000s rebellions against ethnic discrimination centered on Khartoum authority such as Minawi’s Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and jibril Ibrahim-led Justice & Equality Movement (JEM). Their leaders briefly joined transitional governments after signing South-Sudan brokered Juba peace Agreements in 2020 but returned once new fighting erupted aligning militarily against RSF advances.
Their core aims focus on achieving meaningful ethnic justice via granting relative autonomy for Darfur while ensuring genuine access into formal politics plus redressal for genocide victims alongside systematic reconstruction efforts across devastated communities.
They control key areas across northern Darfur cooperating loosely under coalitions like Joint Darfur Forces which temporarily coordinate with regular army units yet face ongoing factional discord notably around Abdulwahid Nur’s faction hindering greater unity among rebels.
Islamists & Civil Actors: Two Ideological Extremes
The Islamists tracing lineage back to Omar al-Bashir’s National Congress Party lost influence after his ouster but recently reactivated partnerships closely tied with army elites seeking restoration toward Islamic-oriented state governance resisting secular-liberal agendas.
They view themselves natural allies promoting shared interests protecting traditional power arrangements wishing especially for Sharia-based legislation coupled with strong participation rights during upcoming transitions.
Conversely civilian movements empowered since 2019 revolutions-inclusive coalitions like Freedom & Change Forces represent popular demands calling for democratic elections separation between security apparatuses versus political affairs accountability mechanisms targeting perpetrators behind violence regimes opposing prolonged militarization authoritarianism faced critical internal splits:
Some factions endorse limited support toward established army structures counterbalancing rapid-support elements,
while others denounce both rivals emphatically emphasizing independant non-military governance
(committees derived grassroots resistance alongside professional unions remain robust yet marginal regarding formal political bargaining spaces).
Tribes & Local Militias: Loyalty Based on Ethnicity
Sudan’s social fabric comprises numerous tribes aligned according geographic-past affiliations shaping decisions accordingly-for example Masalit tribe westward towards darfur together Zaghawa northbound endured repeated discrimination policies perpetuated centrally for decades forcing many sections into forming autonomous local militia defending land livelihood security rather than pursuing outright governmental mandates or ambitions associated broader politics.
Arab tribes generally back RSFs reflective underlying leadership origins although intra-tribal rivalry frequently destabilizes temporary accords.More newly emerging self-defense entities such “Sudanese Shield” provide protection mostly encompassing central-northern communities carrying out sporadic combat roles sometimes acting independently other times aligning briefly closer armies indicating escalation past duality main antagonists morphing presently into multilayered confrontations involving complex tribal-local alliances impacting all national dynamics considerably.
The Historical Roots Of The Crisis: Concentration Of Power And Structural Inequality
Understanding current conflict layers requires examining enduring structural patterns where as independence most economic resources plus policymaking centralized exclusively around Khartoum/northern regions leaving peripheral areas such as Darfur Kordofan Eastern provinces marginalized deprived essential public services development opportunities fair representation politically long fostering resentment divisions exacerbated repetitive cycles rebellion insurgency formation systemic injustices fundamentally collision resulting confrontation form prominently seen today .
Military institutions traditionally positioned themselves guarantors territorial unity thus perceiving civic attempts demanding decentralized empowerment legitimate equitable reforms existential threats undermining cohesion prompting iron-fisted interventions creating further alienation opposition grouping crystallizing distrust sequences repeated historically fueling protracted instability .
Conclusion
Today’s chaos represents accumulated effects spanning generations marked primarily rivalry growing unacceptable dominance exertion unwillingness compromise compounded repression civil society expressions failing resolve critical grievances tied ethnicity demands equality.
achieving durable peace hinges unequivocally upon committing key stakeholders including mainly armed forces vis-à-vis rapid-support components returning earnestly extensive national dialogue reviving frameworks akin Juba Accord serving blueprint socio-political reconstruction initiatives otherwise spiraling violence starvation eventual disintegration risks transforming sovereigned land endless theater turf wars domestic conflicting interests foreign actors alike .
