SUMMARY
Sudan became independent from Egypt and the United Kingdom on 1 January 1956. Since independence, the country has alternated between periods of military and civilian rule, although military governments have dominated much of Sudan’s post-independence history. On 30 June 1989, a group of military officers allied with the National Islamic Front (NIF) overthrew Sudan’s elected government in a bloodless coup, bringing Omar al-Bashir to power. The coup, widely believed to have been orchestrated by Islamist leader Hassan al-Turabi, ended Sudan’s short-lived democratic period and strengthened the role of political Islam within the state. Under Bashir’s rule, the regime pursued an Islamist political agenda and consolidated authority through repression, military expansion, and the suppression of opposition movements.
During the conflict in Darfur in the early 2000s, the Sudanese government increasingly relied on Arab militias, commonly known as the Janjaweed, to combat rebel groups. These militias were accused of carrying out widespread abuses against civilians, particularly among non-Arab communities in Darfur. Over time, the Janjaweed were formalized and reorganized under state structures, eventually becoming the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in 2013 under the leadership of Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly known as Hemedti. Although officially integrated into the Sudanese security apparatus, the RSF maintained a high degree of autonomy while operating alongside the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). Under Bashir, the RSF became one of the regime’s most powerful security actors and was used in counterinsurgency campaigns as well as in suppressing political dissent.
In 2005, the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), ending the Second Sudanese Civil War. The agreement established a Government of National Unity (GoNU) between the ruling National Congress Party (NCP), the successor to the NIF, and the SPLM/A, while also granting autonomy to Southern Sudan during a six-year interim period followed by a referendum on independence. Despite the agreement, tensions between the main parties persisted, and the GoNU remained deeply divided. Following the 2011 referendum, South Sudan became independent in July 2011.
In December 2018, widespread protests erupted in Sudan over worsening economic conditions and soon evolved into nationwide demands for President Omar al-Bashir’s resignation. Bashir was overthrown on 11 April 2019 in a military coup led jointly by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan of the SAF and Hemedti of the RSF, who subsequently established the Transitional Military Council (TMC). Later in 2019, under pressure from civil society groups and international mediators, military and civilian actors signed a transitional power-sharing agreement that established the Transitional Sovereignty Council, headed by al-Burhan with Hemedti as deputy chairman. However, the arrangement remained fragile due to deep mistrust between civilian and military factions. While civilian actors sought democratic reforms and reduced military influence, the military leadership resisted efforts that threatened its political and economic power.
The transition collapsed in October 2021, when al-Burhan and Hemedti jointly carried out a coup that dissolved civilian institutions and detained political leaders. In December 2022, military and civilian actors signed a new Framework Agreement, brokered by the United Nations, African Union (AU), and Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), aimed at restoring a transition to civilian rule. However, tensions between the SAF and RSF intensified over security sector reform, particularly the integration of the RSF into the regular army (SAF). The RSF favored a gradual integration process that would preserve its autonomy, while the SAF demanded rapid unification under centralized military command. These disputes ultimately contributed to the outbreak of armed conflict between the SAF and RSF on 15 April 2023. Following the outbreak of the civil war, the RSF emerged as a separate actor opposing the Government of Sudan, which became primarily represented by the SAF under the leadership of Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.
The Government of Sudan has been involved in the state-based and one-sided categories of UCDP organized violence.
