War in Darfur

"Situation in Darfur" redirects here. For the criminal investigation by the International Criminal Court, see International Criminal Court investigation in Darfur.
Further information: Darfur genocide
Not to be confused with Invasion of Darfur or Sudanese civil war (2023–present).
War in Darfur
Part of Sudanese Civil Wars

Military situation in Sudan on 6 June 2016. (Darfur on the far left)
  Under control of the Sudanese Government and allies
  Under control of the Sudan Revolutionary Front and allies
  Under control of the Sudanese Awakening Revolutionary Council
For a more detailed map of the current military situation in Sudan, see here.
Date26 February 2003 – 31 August 2020
(16 years, 11 months, 3 weeks and 6 days)
Location
Darfur, Sudan
Result

Stalemate

Belligerents

SRF[a]
(since 2006)

  • JEM (since 2003)
  • SLA (some factions) (since 2003)
  • LJM (2010–11)[b]

SLA (some factions)
SARC (from 2014)
SLFA (from 2017)[2]

  • SLA-Unity
  • SLMJ
  • JEM (Jali)

Supported by:
 South Sudan[3]
 Chad (2005–2010)[4]
 Eritrea (until 2008)[5]
Libya (until 2011)[6]

 Uganda (until 2015)[7]

 Sudan

Chadian rebel groups[8]
Anti-Gaddafi forces (2011)[9]
Supported by:

 Libya (since 2011)[10]
 China[11]
 Iran (until 2016) [12]
 Russia[13]
 Belarus[14]
 Syria (2000s, alleged)[15]		 United Nations UNAMID (2007–2020)
Commanders and leaders

Ahmed Diraige
Khalil Ibrahim †
Gibril Ibrahim
Abdul Wahid al Nur (SLA-AW)
Minni Minnawi (SLA-MM)

Musa Hilal (POW)[16] (SARC)

Sudan Abdel Fattah al-Burhan
Sudan Omar al-Bashir (until April 2019)[17]
Sudan Musa Hilal (until 2017)
Sudan Hamid Dawai
Sudan Ali Kushayb
Sudan Ahmed Haroun (until April 2019)[18][19]
Sudan Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo

Sudan Mohammed Nour Abdelkerim[c]

United Nations Martin Ihoeghian Uhomoibhi[20]

United Nations Frank Mushyo Kamanzi[21]
Units involved

SLA

JEM

  • Gibril Ibrahim faction
  • Abdallah Bishir Jali faction[23]

Sudanese Armed Forces

No specific units
Strength

SRF: 60,000

SAF: 109,300[d]

Janjaweed: <25,000		 UNAMID:
15,845 soldiers and 3,403 police officers[28]
Casualties and losses
Unknown Unknown 235 killed as of 31 August 2016[29]

Total killed:
300,000 (UN estimate)
10,000 (Sudanese government estimate)[30]

Total displaced:

2,850,000–3,000,000[31] (UN estimate)
450,000 (Sudanese government estimate)
  1. ^ Known as the National Redemption Front prior to 2011.
  2. ^ Signed the Doha Darfur Peace Agreement in 2011.[1]
  3. ^ Although he was a Chadian rebel leader and he was also the head of an insurgent militia, Mohammed Nour Abdelkerim was so close to the Sudanese Armed Forces that he enlisted as an officer in the Popular Defence Forces, while his troops were temporarily organized as a regular pro-government militia. He and his militia left Sudanese service in 2005 in order to take part in the Chadian Civil War (2005–2010).[8]
  4. ^ Number does not represent the number of soldiers stationed in Darfur, but the total number of military personnel.[26][27]
War in Darfur
Combatants
Other articles

The War in Darfur, also nicknamed the Land Cruiser War,[note 1] was a major armed conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan that began in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) rebel groups began fighting against the government of Sudan, which they accused of oppressing Darfur's non-Arab population.[33][34] The government responded to attacks by carrying out a campaign of ethnic cleansing against Darfur's non-Arabs. This resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands of civilians and the indictment of Sudan's president, Omar al-Bashir, for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court.[35]

One side of the conflict is mainly composed of the Sudanese military, police, and the Janjaweed, a Sudanese militia group whose members are mostly recruited among Arabized indigenous Africans and a small number of Bedouin of the northern Rizeigat; the majority of other Arab groups in Darfur remained uninvolved.[36] The other side is made up of rebel groups, notably the SLM/A and the JEM, recruited primarily from the non-Arab Muslim Fur, Zaghawa, and Masalit ethnic groups. The African Union and the United Nations also have a joint peacekeeping mission in the region, named UNAMID. Although the Sudanese government publicly denies that it supported the Janjaweed, evidence supports claims that it provided financial assistance and weapons and coordinated joint attacks, many against civilians.[37][38] Estimates of the number of human casualties range up to several hundred thousand dead, from either combat or starvation and disease. Mass displacements and coercive migrations forced millions into refugee camps or across the border, creating a humanitarian crisis. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell described the situation as a genocide or acts of genocide.[39]

The Sudanese government and the JEM signed a ceasefire agreement in February 2010, with a tentative agreement to pursue peace. The JEM has the most to gain from the talks and could see semi-autonomy much like South Sudan.[40] However, talks were disrupted by accusations that the Sudanese army launched raids and air strikes against a village, violating the Tolu agreement. The JEM, the largest rebel group in Darfur, vowed to boycott negotiations.[41]

The August 2019 Draft Constitutional Declaration, signed by military and civilian representatives during the Sudanese Revolution, requires that a peace process leading to a peace agreement be made in Darfur and other regions of armed conflict in Sudan within the first six months of the 39-month transition period to democratic civilian government.[42][43]

A comprehensive peace agreement was signed on 31 August 2020 between the Sudanese authorities and several rebel factions to end armed hostilities.[44]

List of abbreviations used in this article

AU: African Union
DLF: Darfur Liberation Front
ICC: International Criminal Court
IDP: Internally Displaced Person
JEM: Justice and Equality Movement
SLM/A/A: Sudan Liberation Movement/Army
SLM/A: Sudan Liberation Movement
SPLA: Sudan People's Liberation Army
UN: United Nations
UNAMID: United Nations African Union Mission in Darfur
UNSC: United Nations Security Council

  1. ^ "Darfur Peace Agreement – Doha draft" (PDF). Sudan Tribune. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
  2. ^ "Three Darfur factions establish new rebel group". Sudan Tribune. 7 July 2017.
  3. ^ "Al Bashir threatens to 'disarm Darfur rebels' in South Sudan". Radio Dabanga. 29 April 2015. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
  4. ^ "Chad, and Darfur, After Bashir". Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
  5. ^ Afrol News – Eritrea, Chad accused of aiding Sudan rebels Archived 29 June 2012 at archive.today 7 de septiembre de 2007
  6. ^ "Sudan adjusting to post-Gaddafi era - YouTube". YouTube. 21 December 2011. Archived from the original on 5 August 2012. Retrieved 24 November 2015. Sudan adjusting to post-Gaddafi era
  7. ^ "Uganda Signals Diplomatic Breakthrough With Sudan on Rebels". Bloomberg. 13 February 2015. Archived from the original on 22 January 2018. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  8. ^ a b Debos 2016, p. 86.
  9. ^ "Sudan: Govt Deploys Troops to Borders With Libya". Sudan Tribune. 31 May 2011. Archived from the original on 3 June 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2020 – via allafrica.com.
  10. ^ "The Sudanese Role in Libya 2011". 17 December 2012. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
  11. ^ McGreal, Chris (14 February 2008). "What is China doing in Darfur?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
  12. ^ "Is a Sudanese-Iranian rapprochement possible?". Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
  13. ^ "Russia's footprint in Sudan". Institute for the Study of Human Rights. 1 March 2022. Retrieved 7 April 2023.[permanent dead link‍]
  14. ^ "Top-10 обвинений Беларуси в сомнительных оружейных сделках". UDF.BY | Новости Беларуси. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  15. ^ Ofcansky, Thomas P. (2015). "Foreign Military Assistance" (PDF). In Berry, LaVerle (ed.). Sudan: a country study (5th ed.). Washington, D.C.: Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. pp. 344–347. ISBN 978-0-8444-0750-0.
  16. ^ a b c Andrew McGregor (31 May 2019). "Continued Detention of Rebel POWs suggests Sudan's military rulers are not ready to settle with the Armed Opposition". Aberfoyle Inzernational Security. Archived from the original on 24 June 2019. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
  17. ^ "Sudan's Bashir Forced to Step Down". Reuters. 11 April 2019. Archived from the original on 19 December 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  18. ^ "Sudan: Application for summonses for two war crimes suspects a small but significant step towards justice in Darfur | Amnesty International". Amnesty.org. 27 February 2007. Archived from the original on 9 August 2009. Retrieved 24 March 2010.
  19. ^ "Sudanese authorities arrest members of Bashir's party: Source". Reuters. 20 April 2019. Archived from the original on 8 May 2019. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
  20. ^ : Le Secrétaire général et la Présidente de la Commission de l'Union africaine nomment M. Martin Ihoeghian Uhomoibhi, du Nigéria, Représentant spécial conjoint pour le Darfour et Chef de la MINUAD Archived 12 October 2017 at the Wayback Machine, UN, 27 October 2015
  21. ^ : Le Secrétaire général et l'Union africaine nomment le général de corps d'armée Frank Mushyo Kamanzi, du Rwanda, Commandant de la force de la MINUAD Archived 12 October 2017 at the Wayback Machine, UN, 14 December 2015
  22. ^ "Sudan, two rebel factions discuss ways to hold peace talks on Darfur conflict". Sudan Tribune. 5 June 2016. Archived from the original on 6 June 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
  23. ^ a b "Three Darfur factions establish new rebel group". Sudan Tribune. 7 July 2017. Archived from the original on 9 July 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  24. ^ "Series of explosions at weapons cache rock town in West Kordofan". Sudan Tribune. 6 June 2016. Archived from the original on 6 June 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
  25. ^ "Who are Sudan's Jem rebels?". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 18 March 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  26. ^ a b Military Balance 2007, 293.
  27. ^ "Sudan Military Strength". GFP. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
  28. ^ : Faits et chiffres Archived 30 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine, UN, 26 October 2016
  29. ^ : (5a) Fatalities by Year, Mission and Incident Type up to 31 Aug 2016 Archived 13 January 2017 at the Wayback Machine, UN, 8 September 2016
  30. ^ "Darfur Conflict". Thomson Reuters Foundation. Archived from the original on 24 May 2015. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  31. ^ "Sudan". United to End Genocide. Archived from the original on 13 July 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2015.
  32. ^ Neville (2018), p. 20.
  33. ^ "Q&A: Sudan's Darfur conflict". BBC News. 8 February 2010. Archived from the original on 14 April 2009. Retrieved 24 March 2010.
  34. ^ "Reuters AlertNet – Darfur conflict". Alertnet.org. Archived from the original on 1 May 2010. Retrieved 24 March 2010.
  35. ^ "The Prosecutor v. Omar Hassan Ahmad Al Bashir". International Criminal Court. Archived from the original on 8 May 2016. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  36. ^ de Waal, Alex (25 July 2004). "Darfur's Deep Grievances Defy All Hopes for An Easy Solution". The Observer. London. Archived from the original on 28 August 2013. Retrieved 13 January 2011.
  37. ^ "Rights Group Says Sudan's Government Aided Militias". The Washington Post. 20 July 2004. Archived from the original on 4 January 2006. Retrieved 14 January 2007.
    "Darfur – Meet the Janjaweed". American Broadcasting Company. 3 June 2008. Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 16 July 2008.
  38. ^ Uppsala Conflict Data Program Conflict Encyclopedia, Sudan, one-sided conflict, Janjaweed – civilians Archived 22 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  39. ^ Adam Jones (27 September 2006). Genocide: A Comprehensive Introduction. Routledge. p. 373. ISBN 978-1-134-25980-9. Archived from the original on 19 March 2015. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  40. ^ "Will peace return to Darfur?". BBC News. 23 February 2010. Archived from the original on 8 July 2010. Retrieved 11 July 2010.
  41. ^ "Jem Darfur rebels snub Sudan peace talks over 'attacks'". BBC News. 4 May 2010. Archived from the original on 8 July 2010. Retrieved 11 July 2010.
  42. ^ Cite error: The named reference raisethevoices_4Aug2019_const_dec was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  43. ^ Cite error: The named reference Const_Dec_En_unofficial was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  44. ^ Cite error: The named reference aljazeera2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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