Watch CBS News
By Haley Ott
/ CBS News
The death toll from the crisis in Sudan as well-armed factions led by two rival commanders continue fighting each other in heavily populated cities has reached at least 270 people, according to the United Nations. Violence was still raging Wednesday despite a planned ceasefire, five days into the fighting and days after a U.S. diplomatic convoy came under fire.
Here’s what’s happening in the east African nation, and why:
The clashes in Sudan are between the Sudanese Armed Forces, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group, led by Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.
Until recently, the leaders of the two forces were allies. They worked together in 2019 to overthrow Sudan’s brutal dictator Omar al-Bashir, who ruled over the country for three decades, sweeping to power as thousands of people took to the streets in a popular uprising against al-Bashir.
After that coup, a power-sharing government was formed, made up of civilian and military groups. The plan was for it to run Sudan for a few years and oversee a transition to a completely civilian-run government.
But in 2021, al-Burhan, who had become chief of the power-sharing council, dissolved it, declaring he would instead hold elections in 2023.
The current fighting broke out between the army and the RSF as a result of negotiations over integrating the two forces ahead of the intended restoration of civilian rule. There was disagreement over which general would be subordinate to the other, and how quickly the RSF would be incorporated into the Sudanese military.
Heavy fighting broke out across the country on April 8, with Sudan’s capital city of Khartoum and neighboring Obdurman being turned into battlefields. Though two ceasefires were agreed by the warring factions, both failed to stop the violence.
A local medical group said Tuesday that, of the majority of those killed since the fighting broke out, at least 174 people were civilians. Three people who worked for the World Food Program have been killed.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that a clearly marked U.S. diplomatic convoy had been fired on earlier in the week. No one was injured and it was unclear who was responsible for the attack.
Americans in the country have been urged to shelter in place, and the State Department has established a task force to oversee management and logistics related to the violence, with contingency planning underway for American personnel in the country.
Other nations have taken similar action, though the ongoing violence in the major cities has complicated the planning for any potential evacuations.
CBS News’ Debora Patta and Sarah Carter contributed to this story.
Haley Ott is a digital reporter/producer for CBS News based in London.
First published on April 19, 2023 / 9:18 AM
© 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Copyright ©2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved.