Sudan

The African Union has rejected a move by Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to form a rival government, calling it a threat to peace and national unity. The RSF announced the creation of a 15-member “government of peace and unity” on Saturday, naming Mohamed Hassan al-Ta'ayshi as prime minister and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, as head of a new presidential council.

Arab Gulf states have particular capacity to influence the outcome of Sudan’s conflict due to their wealth, financial ties to fighting groups and regional interests, which include securing access to Sudan’s agricultural, livestock and mineral resources.

[…] As the conflict between the RSF and the regular army roared into its third year, Kordofan has emerged as a key battlefront, with the paramilitaries seeking to consolidate their control in the west after losing the capital Khartoum in March.

The United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken has invited the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to participate in ceasefire talks starting August 14th in Switzerland. Co-hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Switzerland, the talks aim to end the devastating conflict that has caused immense suffering and displacement in Sudan over the past 15 months.

As the humanitarian crisis deepens in Sudan, the UN and partners have revised and scaled up a response plan to support more than 380,000 displaced people in Tawila, North Darfur state. 

Sudan will block voice and video calls on Meta’s WhatsApp messenger starting next week, the country’s telecommunications regulator said on Sunday, citing “national security” threats in a country ravaged by war.

Intensifying clashes in Sudan’s Kordofan region between rival militaries have killed hundreds and wounded many more in recent days, warned the UN humanitarian affairs office (OCHA) on Tuesday. Amid ongoing communication disruptions in the area, confirming the exact civilian death toll remains difficult, but reports indicate that at least 300 people – including children and pregnant women – were killed in attacks on villages in Bara locality, North Kordofan State, between 10 and 13 July.

Escalating violence, displacement and heavy rains are deepening the needs of civilians caught in the war in Sudan, the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, said on Monday. 

Systematic rape and sexual violence are being used as weapons of war in Darfur, the International Criminal Court (ICC) warned on Thursday, as part of a widening investigation into what its Deputy Prosecutor said are escalating atrocities against civilians in the conflict-ridden region.

Gulf state actors are expanding their engagements in critical infrastructure, ports, and the security sector in East Africa as they seek opportunities and compete for influence—reshaping the investment and political contours of the region.