A-Infos (en) Italy, Sicilia Libertaria #463 - SUDAN. The Forgotten War (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

The civil war fought in Sudan since April 2023 is one of the largest 
ongoing military conflicts, both in terms of the number of victims and 
the territorial scope of the fighting. Yet it receives very little media 
attention, and it is rare to hear news about it or about solidarity 
initiatives for the Sudanese people, who, despite themselves, are caught 
up in it and are suffering its grave consequences. Precisely to 
acknowledge and denounce the current humanitarian, social, and 
environmental crisis created by this forgotten war, it is appropriate to 
recount its history, attempting to identify its causes and most 
significant developments.

The current territory of Sudan was reduced in 2011 following a civil war 
that led to the separation of the southern territories of the country, 
leading to the establishment of the new state of South Sudan. In 
present-day Sudan, an Islamist dictatorship has been in place since 
1989, continuously led by General Omar al-Bashir; It ended on April 11, 
2019, with a military coup conducted after four months of popular 
protests. The Transitional Military Council government was subsequently 
established, and a few months later, the Sovereign Council of Sudan, a 
civilian and military government entrusted with the leadership of Sudan 
until the democratic transition scheduled for 2022. However, this 
transition did not take place because on October 25, 2021, another coup, 
led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (former president of the Sovereign 
Council), imposed a new military government.

General al-Burhan became Sudan's new head of state. He decided to 
restart the process of democratic transition by appointing Abdalla 
Hamdok, who had served as prime minister during the Sovereign Council 
government, as prime minister. Hamdok resigned on January 2, 2022, 
following the violent state repression of anti-military protests. He was 
succeeded by Osman Hussein. Sudan continued to experience severe 
political instability, which led, in April 2023, to a coup attempt led 
by the paramilitary organization known as the Rapid Support Forces 
(RSF), led by General Mohammed Dagalo, also known as Hemedti, former 
vice president of the Sovereign Council. Since then, Sudan has been in a 
war between the RSF and the regular armed forces for control of the 
country. Over the past few months, the RSF have occupied the Darfur 
region, which constitutes the westernmost part of Sudan. Government 
forces maintain control of the capital (Khartoum) and a large area in 
the east. The war is also being fought by other factions that control 
smaller parts of the territory.

The clashes between the factions have so far resulted in more than 
150,000 civilian casualties and the displacement of millions of people 
from their homes (more than 10 million are estimated to be displaced out 
of a total population of approximately 40 million). Another consequence 
of the war is widespread famine affecting millions of Sudanese, 600,000 
of whom are experiencing "extreme famine." The deprivation caused by the 
war has increased the spread of diseases such as malaria, typhoid, 
dengue, and cholera among the population.

Meanwhile, the factions fighting in Sudan have established direct 
relationships with state institutions in several foreign countries, and 
the course of the conflict itself appears to be influenced by the 
interests and intervention of these countries. Some sources have 
revealed military support for the two factions from Egypt, Russia, 
Ukraine, and the United Arab Emirates at various stages of the conflict, 
as well as Turkey's commercial involvement, which reportedly sold 
weapons to both the RSF and the regular armed forces. An investigation 
also revealed that Italy provided military training to the RSF in 2022 
in exchange for the RSF's control of the Sudan-Libya border, thus 
preventing migrants from crossing into Libyan territory. The news of 
Italy's support for the RSF is confirmed by a statement from Hemedti 
himself.

Opposition to the civil war within Sudan is evidenced by online articles 
and press releases reporting a harsh crackdown on anti-military 
initiatives, resulting in the arrest, torture, and killing of Sudanese 
anti-war activists. A press release states that the Sudanese Anarchist 
Federation (SAF), one of the most committed anti-war groups, has 
launched an international fundraising campaign that has so far allowed 
several comrades to escape dangerous situations and continue their 
militant activities (including through the purchase of a clandestine 
printing press), both inside and outside Sudan. Internationalist and 
international solidarity with these comrades continues today, and we 
appeal to it against all wars and all forms of power.

Stevo

https://www.sicilialibertaria.it/
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