What the struggle for Power is causing in Sudan

Sudan a Northeast Africa country with a population of over 50 million is having serious crisis that has even led to the evacuation of foreign citizens from other countries and left most of their citizens stranded. This crisis has affected the economy, brought hunger, killings and led to the death of many especially in the country’s capital Khartoum.

The Genesis of the Crisis

Two Generals, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo are fighting for power to rule in Sudan. Abdel Fattah is Sudan’s military ruler and head of the army while Hamdan Dagalo is the country’s deputy and head of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group. According to reports they have shared power since carrying out a coup in 2021 when together they pushed civilians from a transitional government.

Before the conflict the two generals worked with a deal that would have ended their remaining disputes, they were to work on the security sector and the integration of the RSF into the army and also move the country toward a long-awaited, civilian-led democracy. They linked up with some mediators from foreign countries and agreed to handover power. The foreign mediators felt assured that they would come to an agreement and be at peace but what they did not know is that they these guys have a very long history of saying one thing and doing the other. They both chose violence and this has led to the crisis in Sudan.

The Damage

In all of these the citizens are the ones suffering, the state capital Khartoum has turned to a war zone as many have been killed and injured. A 72-hour ceasefire was agreed on by Sudan’s Armed Forces (SAF) and Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in order to enable foreigners evacuate the city.

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The crisis has brought shortage in food, water, fuel, medicines and others. Sadly Sudanese people have been left to fend for themselves or leave the country. Some of the citizens are travelling to the Egyptian border before heading to other cities.

In summary Al-Burhan and Dagalo both cemented their rise to power by currying favor with the Gulf powerhouses. They commanded separate battalions of Sudanese forces, who were sent to serve with the Saudi-led coalition forces in Yemen. Now they find themselves locked in a power struggle.

The sad part is when the fighting will end is unclear as both sides claim control over key sites and fighting has been reported across the country in places far from the capital Khartoum.

International powers have expressed alarm, meetings have been held concerning the crisis in Sudan. Apart from concerns over civilians there are likely other motivations at play cause Sudan is resource-rich and strategically located. From the look of things it shows that there would be more misery for the Sudanese people.