Sudan and Red Sea Maritime “Mayhem”
Sudan is no stranger to civil war, humanitarian crises, or external meddling.
But that doesn’t mean we should avert our gaze.
Since Sudan gained sovereignty in 1956, the conflict between the country’s wealthier, Muslim-majority northern region, and the less developed Christian-majority southern region ultimately divided the country into Sudan and South Sudan in 2011. In 2003, the Darfur war, condemned later on by the International Criminal Court and the US State Department as genocide, haunted the people of Darfur, and the whole world had eyes on Sudan.
Over the past two decades, less media attention has been brought to Sudan, despite the confusing power struggle following multiple coups resulting in a civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a powerful paramilitary group. With the final resignation of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdock, the country no longer has civilian control, and has erupted into chaos. On September 26, the Sudanese government forces shelled RSF bases in the capital of Khartoum. Practicing leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan wishes for an end to the war, but wants no concession to the RSF. The SAF is in need of weapons and spare parts to continue fighting the RSF.
The current conflict began in April of 2023 and has already displaced over 11 million people, who are fleeing to other unstable bordering states. The UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk commented on the “high risk of ethnically targeted violations and abuses” by the RSF. Antony Blinken has pointed to the war crimes committed by both sides in this conflict. Acute hunger is rampant, with around 25 million people, or half the country, suffering from severe hunger, hinting at a possible famine. Along with that, a cholera epidemic is raging throughout the country.
Humanitarian support for the Sudanese people has been dismal, with many NGOs no longer operating in the country, and international media referencing it as the “forgotten war” waged against civilians. Funding is hard to obtain, with very little of the requested funding actually received. Largely, this conflict is considered the “forgotten war” both because reporting within Sudan is extremely dangerous, and because the country has been in shambles for so long now, the international community has grown tired. Further, global attention is elsewhere, mostly on the wars raging in Gaza and Ukraine.
With the widening Middle East conflict and tensions with Russia, and out of genuine concern for the people of Sudan, it is critical for the West and the US to pay attention to the events unfolding in Sudan, and to do something to try and relieve the Sudanese people suffering from this power struggle and from the greed of other countries.
The political violence and state fragmentation that resulted in the rise of the Houthis in Yemen is a broader trend of the Middle East and the Horn of Africa, particularly in Sudan. The conflicts in the Middle East and Sudan may spread to total chaos in the Red Sea, disrupting the flow of maritime traffic and accelerating instability. With the outbreak of Sudan’s conflict, shipping firms refuse to stop at Port Sudan. The economy is slow, development sluggish, governance virtually nonexistent, only fueling the humanitarian crisis and allowing for other actors to step in. Iran, for one, has been seeking to build a naval base, giving military support to the SAF, which should be cause of concern to the US and could possibly worsen attacks on shipping by the Houthis.
Similarly, RSF’s influence over Sudan’s gold mining industry has attracted the United Arab Emirates, another country that has wished to implement a $6 billion port and an agricultural project on the Red Sea coast in Sudan. The UAE has given military aid to the RSF, and on September 30, blamed the SAF for bombing the residence of the UAE ambassador in the capital. In response, the SAF blamed the RSF. The finger pointing and foreign interference by a powerful Gulf State such as the UAE only adds fuel to the fire.
External actors, such as Russia, find strategic value in involving themselves in Sudan, taking advantage of the tense situation. Some Russians are looking to expand their operations in Africa, indirectly funding the RSF through the Wagner Group. On the other side, Moscow has been giving military support to the SAF in exchange for Red Sea naval bases. A Russian presence in the Red Sea would potentially disrupt US and other NATO allies from trade, and if run-ins were to occur in the region, tensions would only escalate. With Russia desperate for access to a warm-water port located near a strategic trade route following its war in Ukraine, Moscow continues with its attempts to implement the agreement, originally signed with then-President Bashir in 2017, to build a naval base.
Recently, at the UN General Assembly held in New York, Sudan’s army chief General Al-Burhan urged an end to the fighting, questioning the international community’s silence. The RSF is strong, arguably stronger than the of the SAF, meaning that if not stopped by the international community, the war will continue to rampage and destroy the livelihoods of the Sudanese.