5 keys to understanding why there are so many deaths in Sudan (and what risk the rest of Africa is running from this conflict)

On Tuesday, for the fourth consecutive day, international news agencies reported on the chaos that has been unleashed by the bitter civil war in which Sudan.

LOOK: Sudanese army and paramilitary group agree to a 24-hour ceasefire, according to media

In this article, Trade It explains in 5 keys what you should know about this conflict.

1. What is happening?

Sudan, a nation located in North Africa and bordering Egypt, has been mired in civil war since last weekend.

The clashes began in North Darfur and until the end of Tuesday there were 270 civilian deaths, in addition to more than 2,000 wounded, according to the count carried out by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The impoverished African nation has accumulated several years of crisis, which led international organizations to estimate at the beginning of the year that 16 million people need humanitarian aid. The confrontations will undoubtedly aggravate this situation.

2. Who are facing?

On one side is the current de facto leader of Sudan, General Abdel Fatah al Burhan, who has controlled the country since the October 2021 coup.

On the other hand, General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo leads the Rapid Support Forces (FAR) paramilitary group.

According to the European Council on Foreign Relations, the FAR is financed thanks to the fact that it controls numerous gold mines. The United States assures, for its part, that the guerrillas have the support of the Russian mercenary group Wagner.

3. Why do they clash?

Despite the fact that Hamdan is an old ally of Al Burhan, and together they perpetrated the 2021 coup, on April 15 he decided to take up arms after several weeks of unsuccessful negotiations to form a new transitional government.

In addition, both the public and the RFA accuse Al Burhan of benefiting the Islamist and tribal leaders who ruled at the time of the dictator Omar al Bashir, who held power for 30 years.

The United States government called on Monday that both sides institute a 24-hour ceasefire so that civilians can “return to their families safely and get desperately needed emergency supplies”.

However, news agencies reported on Tuesday that shelling and shooting continued to hit the capital and other cities across the country at a hellish pace on Tuesday.

During the second and third days of fighting, both sides managed to install a “humanitarian pause” three hours a day.

4. What about international organizations?

The international organizations present in Sudan have been particularly affected in the midst of the conflict.

During the first day of clashes, three employees of the UN World Food Program were killed as a result of the fighting.

The representative of the mission in Sudan, Volker Perthes, condemned “vigorously attacks on United Nations personnel”.

In total, 250 UN programs of all kinds have had to be interrupted and, in addition, millions of people are without access to food, water and other vital services because of the fighting, according to the EFE news agency.

The international NGO Doctors Without Borders denounced on Tuesday that its facilities in the province of Darfur were “assaulted by armed men” that “they stole everything”.

The diplomatic headquarters are not spared from the conflict either. On Tuesday, the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, reported that the ambassador of the European Union, the Irish Aidan O’Hara, “was attacked in his own residence”.

A US embassy convoy was attacked the same day and Spain decided to close its embassy in the country due to the high security risk.

5. Could it affect the rest of Africa?

The East African Community (EAC) on Tuesday expressed concern about a possible “ripple effect” from the Sudanese conflict.

In the same way, on Sunday, a day after the clashes began, the presidents of Kenya, South Sudan, Uganda, Somalia and Djibouti – who together with Ethiopia and Eritrea make up the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) – held an extraordinary virtual summit to address the problem.

In the virtual meeting, IGAD urged dialogue and proposed to facilitate the “reconciliation” between the Army and the FAR.

However, it is feared that the hectic hornet’s nest will end up involving other governments, such as those of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, backed by the United States and the United Kingdom, who advocate the transition to democracy in the country; or from Russia, which seeks to open a naval base in the Red Sea, so it would be in its best interest to keep the military regime in power.

Source: Elcomercio

jack

I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.