In Sudan, to maintain its grip on power, the Al-Bashir regime created the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) as a parallel army to protect itself from the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), the national military. The purpose of the RSF was to ensure loyalty to the regime and balance the power of the SAF.
Later, the Sudanese people launched a massive revolution against the Al-Bashir regime. However, the revolution did not directly topple the regime. Instead, a double coup occurred as the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces jointly overthrew Al-Bashir and seized power.
As calls for a civilian transition grew louder, the Sudanese left, represented by the Taqadum party led by Abdullah Hamdok, emerged as a reformist force. One of the solutions proposed by Taqadum was to unify the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces into a single national army to end military division.
However, the situation escalated when the Rapid Support Forces decided to launch a coup against the Sudanese Armed Forces. The coup was poorly executed and far from perfect, leading to a full-scale war between the two sides. During this time, the UAE intervened to support the Rapid Support Forces, turning the conflict into what resembled an internal invasion backed by foreign powers.
Amid this turmoil, Taqadum, led by Abdullah Hamdok, took a controversial stance by supporting the Rapid Support Forces, despite their connection to foreign intervention. This support seemed driven by deep-seated resentments and narrow ideologies, particularly the left’s rejection of the patriarchal system represented by some leaders within the Sudanese Armed Forces. Instead of rising above these grudges for the sake of the country, Taqadum chose to back a foreign-supported military force, exacerbating Sudan’s destruction.
r/Africa
