As many predicted, the war in Sudan did not end with the Sudanese army’s recapture of Khartoum, the Gezira state, and some other parts of the country. It has grown even fiercer, in fact, especially in the Darfur region, following the retreat of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) from the capital. Evidently, the RSF and allied militias have decided to compensate for their defeat by securing this vast and strategically valuable region.
Last week, the RSF announced it had taken control of Zamzam, the largest camp for internally displaced persons in Sudan, located 12 km south of Al-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur. The RSF has also intensified its attacks on Al-Fasher itself, where contingents of the Sudanese National Army (SNA) and its allies are stationed.
A combined force of RSF fighters and members of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), led by Abdel- Aziz Al-Hilu, seized control of a strategic road linking the Naeem market in South Kordofan to the border with South Sudan.
Such developments mark the Sudanese conflict reaching its third year, indicating that the two sides remain as set as ever on pursuing the military solution. Sadly, they remain undeterred by fears that prolonging the war could lead to territorial partition, deaf to appeals to return to the negotiating table, and heedless of local, regional and international condemnations of the ruthless violence and its catastrophic impact on millions of civilians.
Darfur’s considerable geo-strategic value has made it a focal point of the ongoing conflict. The vast state, which spans 493,000 sq km, over a quarter of Sudan’s territory, borders Libya, Chad, the Central African Republic, and South Sudan. Each of these countries has major internal challenges which spill over into Darfur, and vice versa. Darfur also carries significant demographic and economic weight. Its population amounts to roughly 17 per cent of Sudan’s estimated 48 million people, and it is rich in livestock and agriculture, particularly Arabic gum, cotton, wheat, sorghum, and peanuts. It also has substantial mineral and petroleum resources.
The SNA and others have accused the RSF of committing massacres and other war crimes in this area, but while RSF spokesmen have denied targeting civilians Sudanese sources and international organisations claim otherwise. They have issued repeated warnings regarding the high rates of civilian deaths and human rights abuses that have occurred during the fighting – the fiercest since the outbreak of the war in April 2023. Last week, UNICEF reported that at least 23 children were among the dozens of civilians and aid workers killed within just three days in the recent clashes in Darfur.
“These unconscionable acts of violence against civilians, children and aid workers must end immediately. Children must be protected from this senseless violence, and humanitarian workers must never be targets,” UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russel said in a statement. The organisation warned that over 825,000 children were at risk of death in the vicinity of Al-Fasher.
The General Coordination of Displaced Persons and Refugees reported that RSF attacks on Zamzam Camp and the vicinity have destroyed homes, markets, and healthcare facilities, leaving “hundreds dead and wounded, the majority of whom were also women and children.” The advocacy group denounced the attacks as “a war crime and crime against humanity.”
UN Secretary General António Guterres strongly condemned the killing of scores of civilians in attacks on the town of Al-Fasher as well as Zamzam, Abu Shouk and other nearby sites where displaced people are sheltering in Sudan’s North Darfur State. In a statement on 13 April, he stressed that “attacks directed against civilians and indiscriminate attacks are strictly prohibited under international humanitarian law.”
The US also condemned the attacks and called for the immediate opening of humanitarian corridors and accountability for violators of international humanitarian law. British Foreign Secretary David Lammy described the reports coming out of Al-Fasher as horrific, affirming that attacks on civilians and aid workers underscore the need for international action to protect civilians.
The dangerous escalation in Darfur and other parts of Sudan is unfolding against the backdrop of an increasingly dire humanitarian crisis across the country. Millions of Sudanese are facing the spectre of famine; shortages in food, shelter, and basic healthcare are acute.
The country itself is more at risk of partition than ever. The project of a parallel government, announced by the RSF and its allies in Nairobi last month, appears to be receiving support from various regional and perhaps international actors.
On the other hand, talk of stepping up action to halt the war and bring the belligerents back to the negotiating table is at least picking up pace. The US State Department confirmed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Saudi counterpart Faisal bin Farhan agreed on the need for the SNA and RSF to resume peace talks and urgently protect civilians, opening humanitarian corridors, and returning to a path of civilian governance.
The UK hosted a conference in London, attended by representatives of around 20 countries and organisations, to promote ceasefire efforts. However, representatives of the warring parties were excluded from the event. The UK’s Special Envoy to Sudan Richard Crowder, said the conference aimed to support Sudan and foster peace, not to “impose external solutions.”
Khartoum objected to the conference, which was organised by the UK, the EU, France, and Germany. It said while the organisers excluded representatives of Sudan, inviting representatives from the UAE, Kenya, and Chad – all countries Khartoum accuses of backing the RSF insurgency.
While the liberation of Khartoum from RSF forces raised hopes among refugees and the internally displaced from Khartoum and Gezira that they could soon return to their homes, these hopes may have been premature. The widespread destruction and collapse of infrastructure in the capital and Gezira would make life very difficult for returnees.
Meanwhile, the conflict centring on Darfur is generating a new wave of displacement, with thousands fleeing El Fasher and the camps in its vicinity towards other areas in Sudan or across the border into Chad.
In the displacement camps in Darfur and elsewhere, tensions seethe, frequently erupting in the form of unrest and clashes among residents. Such incidents mirror the broader national polarisation and fragmentation, as the struggle over power and resources persists unabated amid horrific devastation. The longer this conflict persists without sincere interventions to halt it, the deeper the scars and resentments will run, and the harder it will be to foster reconciliation and a return to civilian governance.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 17 April, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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