Sudan Civil War | 07 Nov 2025

Source: IE 

Sudan is gripped by a devastating civil war that has derailed its democratic transition and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. 

  • Roots of the Conflict: The war stems from a power struggle between two rival military factions — the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti).  
    • The 2019 ouster of dictator Omar al-Bashir raised hopes for civilian rule, but the 2021 military coup dissolved the transitional government, restoring power to rival security factions 
    • After the 2021 military coup, the conflict spread from Khartoum to Darfur, Kordofan, El Fasher and Gezira, erupting in 2023 into Sudan’s worst crisis in decades as the SAF and RSF clashed violently. 
  • Causes of Conflict:  
    • Ethnic Rivalries: The RSF originated from the Janjaweed militias of the 2000s Darfur conflict, which targeted non-Arab groups such as the Massalit, Fur, and Zaghawa, fueling ethnic mistrust and displacement. 
    • Competition for Resources: Sudan’s vast geography (Sahel to the Red Sea) and competition for land, water, gold, and Red Sea trade routes have further intensified the conflict. 
  • Catastrophic Humanitarian Impact: The conflict has left over 1,50,000 dead, 13 million displaced, and triggered a famine in Darfur’s Zamzam IDP camp, worsening malnutrition and disease across the region.

Sudan 

  • About: Sudan, one of the first African nations to gain independence in 1956 from Egypt and the UK, participated in the 1955 Bandung Conference and remained Africa’s largest country until South Sudan’s secession in 2011. 
  • Geography: It shares borders with the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Libya, and South Sudan, and has a coastline along the Red Sea. 
    • Sudan’s rivers include the Nile River (fed by the Blue Nile and White Nile, meeting at Khartoum), the Barka River, and the Bahr al-Arab.  
  • Sudan Civil War and India: In 2023, India launched Operation Kaveri to evacuate its citizens stranded in Sudan amid clashes between the SAF and RSF.

Read More: Civil War in Sudan