Since April 2023, the civil war in Sudan has been wreaking havoc. The regular army, loyal to President Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, is confronting Mohamed Hamdan 'Hemedti' Dogolo's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The war has resulted in 9,000 deaths and 5 million refugees. It has devastated Sudan's emerging civil society.
Omar al-Bashir's dictatorship fell. We hoped for peace under Burhan and Hemedti . But the civil war raged again. Regular armies faced armed militias. These militias had backing from various regional states. Yet these states did not want a region-wide conflict.
Egypt and Turkey support President Burhan. On the other hand, the United Arab Emirates and Ethiopia stand by Hemedti . Central to this is the Egypt-Ethiopia dam dispute. It poses a water supply threat. The conflict is complicated. Neither side is entirely right or wrong. Peace talks had been initiated, led by the USA.
The Wall Street Journal recently reported an important development. Egypt delivered Turkish Bayraktar drones to the regular army in September. These drones were significant in the Ukrainian conflict. They prevented a Russian invasion of Kiev. Currently, Egypt is training drone pilots. Interestingly, Egypt is also helping Gaza. They are opening a humanitarian corridor at Rafah.
Yet, they're fueling the Sudanese civil war too. Egypt's alliance with Turkey is surprising. It indicates the declining influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in Turkey. Moreover, the Sudan conflict shouldn't be overshadowed by other global issues. The Sudanese want peace. The world's focus on Gaza shouldn't distract from Sudan's plight.
Recently, a drone attack occurred in a market. It killed around 40 people, say human rights groups. The Sudanese crisis might be nearing its end. But peace requires silencing the weapons.
By Arnaud Lacheret, PhD in political science. Arnaud Lacheret is Associate Professor at SKEMA Business School, member of the SKEMA Centre for Global Risks and of the Globalisation Academy in Paris. He is a former Associate Professor at the Arabian Gulf University in Bahrain, where he directed the French Arabian Business School.
