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Military & Security

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The Sudanese Armed Forces, or SAF, found crates of ammunition and mortar bombs ordered by the Kenyan Ministry of Defense and dated from 2023 and 2024 in recaptured weapon depots belonging to Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, Daily Nation and Bellingcat reported on June 15.

Sudan: Nairobi To Face Global Scrutiny as Kenyan Weapons Found in RSF Depot 

Libya

Clashes broke out near the Sudan-Libya border between the Libyan National Army -- reportedly linked to Field Marshal Khalifa Hifter -- and the Sudanese Armed Forces, or SAF, which is loyal to Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, The Sudan Times reported on June 9. 

Sudan, Libya: Libyan National Army and Sudanese Armed Forces Clash at Border

Burundi

Chad

Equatorial Guinea

Eritrea

Republic of the Congo

Sierra Leone

Somalia

Togo

Cuba

Haiti

United States

Venezuela

Iran

Yemen

Laos

Myanmar

Turkmenistan

Afghanistan

Economics

U.S. President Donald Trump signed a ban barring citizens from 12 countries from traveling to the United States, with the order set to take effect on June 9, The New York Times reported on June 4.

U.S.: Trump Administration Issues New Travel Ban

Sudanese U.N. ambassador Al-Harith Idriss accused the United Arab Emirates of directly conducting drone strikes on Port Sudan in early May, Africanews reported on May 20.

Sudan: Army Accuses UAE of May 4 Drone Attacks on Port Sudan

Port Sudan, serving as the headquarters of the Sudanese Armed Forces, or SAF, was struck by multiple drone attacks attributed to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, which has not yet claimed responsibility for the attacks, Reuters reported on May 6. 

Sudan: Multiple RSF Drone Strikes Continue Targeting Key City of Port Sudan 

South Sudan

Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, leader of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, announced on April 15 the formation of a rival administration called the Government of Peace and Unity, AP reported the following day.

Sudan: Paramilitary Group Declares Formation of New Rival Government

United Kingdom

The Sudanese Armed Forces, or SAF, imposed a curfew in the Darfuri city of El Fasher after the rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, seized the neighboring Zamzam refugee camp, Sudan Tribune reported on April 14.

Sudan: SAF Imposes Curfew in El Fasher as U.K. Hosts Peace Conference With Regional Players

Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the leader of the Sudanese Armed Forces, or SAF, announced that the army had retaken the entirety of Khartoum state from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, or RSF, Sudan Tribune reported on March 26.

Sudan: Sudanese Army Retakes Khartoum as the RSF Retreats West 

Snapshots

A photo of Khartoum, Sudan, with columns of smoke rising in the background.

The SAF's military victory in Khartoum marks a turning point in the country's civil war, but a firm resolution remains out of reach as the RSF fights to consolidate control in the west.

What Next for Sudan After the Army Retakes Khartoum?

Assessments

Uganda

South Sudan's President Salva Kiir (right) waves as he arrives in Nairobi, Kenya, on May 9, 2024, for the launch of new peace talks with rebel groups.

Energy

Rising political tensions risk collapsing the peace deal that ended the country's last civil war, while escalating clashes in the north risk drawing in involvement from Sudan's warring parties.

South Sudan Hurtles Toward Another Civil War

Sudanese army soldiers patrol an area in Khartoum on Nov. 3, 2024.

The warring sides' deep distrust and their external backers' competing interests portend a protracted conflict that may expand into South Sudan and Chad, and heighten jihadist activity.

The Security Implications of Sudan's Ongoing Civil War

Ethiopia

Middle East and North Africa

Algeria

Bahrain

Egypt

Iraq

Israel

Jordan

Kuwait

Lebanon

Oman

Palestinian Territories

Qatar

Syria

Turkey

The Geopolitics of Water

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

Population growth, security vacuums, bad governance and climate change will increasingly strain the desert region's already scarce water supplies, raising the risk of social unrest, interstate conflict and violence from non-state actors.

The Geopolitics of Water: In the Middle East, Water Will Increasingly Become a Weapon and Driver of Conflict

Sub-Saharan Africa

Burkina Faso

Cameroon

Central African Republic

Cote d'Ivoire

Mali

Niger

Russia

Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Burkina Faso's junta leader Capt. Ibrahim Traore during a welcoming ceremony at the second Russia-Africa summit in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on July 27, 2023.

Competition against the West will fuel Russia's outreach to Africa, but jihadist expansion in the Sahel will eventually force Moscow into tough policy decisions.

What the Future Holds for Russia in Africa

Saudi Arabia

Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa attends a signing ceremony following talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Russia, on May 23, 2024. 

Bahrain-Iran normalization would reduce risks for Manama amid rising regional tensions, but security and some political vulnerabilities remain.

Normalization With Iran Would Reduce -- but Not Eliminate -- Security Risks for Bahrain

The Mohajer 6 drone is displayed on Aug. 23, 2023, in Tehran, Iran. Through a sort of drone diplomacy, Tehran hopes to rekindle dormant ties with the Sudanese government to aid the latter in its ongoing civil war.

A stronger Sudanese government negotiating hand would result in a power-sharing structure reducing Rapid Support Forces, and by extension, UAE, influence.

Why Iran Is Sending Drones to the Sudanese Armed Forces

South Sudanese military police officers sit on a pickup truck as they monitor the area during a deployment ceremony for South Sudan's unified forces at the Luri Military Training Center in Juba on Nov. 15, 2023. 

If a coup destabilizes South Sudan's fragile power-sharing government, the country could return to civil war.

Coup Rumors in South Sudan Highlight Continued Risk of Political Instability and Civil War 

Smoke plumes billow from a fire at a lumber warehouse in southern Khartoum amidst ongoing fighting on June 7, 2023. 

As the war enters its seventh month, fighting between Sudan's army and the paramilitary RSF shows no sign of abating, with greater civilian and humanitarian hardships on the horizon.

In Sudan, Peace Remains a Distant Prospect

Rwanda

Senegal

People flee their neighborhoods in Khartoum, Sudan, amid fighting between the army and paramilitary troops on April 19, 2023. 

Government institutions in eastern and western Africa remain relatively strong, but potential succession crises, simmering unrest and weak leaders still pose latent risks.

Assessing the Risk of Future African Coups, Part 2: West and East Africa

An aerial view taken Oct. 29, 2022, of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Saudi-UAE tensions will intensify economic, diplomatic and defense competition, with implications for business operations in both and for security in countries like Sudan and Yemen.

Saudi-UAE tensions will intensify economic, diplomatic and defense competition, with implications for business operations in both and for security in countries like Sudan and Yemen.

The Saudi-UAE Regional Rivalry Intensifies

Belarus

Smoke billows north of the Khartoum Bahri district on July 17, 2023, as fighting continues in war-torn Sudan.

The Wagner Group's failed mutiny in Russia could facilitate its expansion in Africa, potentially including increased support of military rule in the Sahel and heightened involvement in Sudan and Libya's civil wars. 

The Wagner Group's 'New Path' in Africa

Sudan is a huge country between Northern and Central Africa which, prior to the independence of South Sudan, was the continent's largest country. Its position has long drawn the attention of outsiders, and once facilitated the birth of powerful empires and city-states.     Since declaring independence from the United Kingdom in 1955, Sudan has struggled to manage its expansive territories and ethno-regional divisions. Khartoum, the country's capital, can be viewed as a relatively isolated city-state that must command the vast spaces and people that surround it. Such a mentality helps explain Khartoum's disastrous management of the country's various rebellions and insurrections. Until recently, the country's leadership has preferred to adopt a belligerent approach to dealing with the country's many outstanding conflicts.     Because Sudan's borders do not fully align with its various ethnic groups, its internal ethnic conflicts have fueled regional conflict as well. Ethnic groups in the Darfur region of eastern Sudan spill over into neighboring Chad, driving the two countries to wage proxy warfare against each other for years by arming and financing rebels intent on revolution.     Sudan's proximity to the Middle East &mdash; as well as its cultural and religious makeup &mdash; has allowed it to build ties with powers there. Though this has benefitted Sudan by allowing it to attract investment from companies such as Saudi Arabia, it has also engendered greater scrutiny.

SITUATION REPORTS

Sudan: Nairobi To Face Global Scrutiny as Kenyan Weapons Found in RSF Depot

Sudan, Libya: Libyan National Army and Sudanese Armed Forces Clash at Border

U.S.: Trump Administration Issues New Travel Ban

Sudan: Army Accuses UAE of May 4 Drone Attacks on Port Sudan

Sudan: Multiple RSF Drone Strikes Continue Targeting Key City of Port Sudan

Sudan: Paramilitary Group Declares Formation of New Rival Government

Sudan: SAF Imposes Curfew in El Fasher as U.K. Hosts Peace Conference With Regional Players

Sudan: Sudanese Army Retakes Khartoum as the RSF Retreats West

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