International | Forgotten conflicts

The world’s deadliest war last year wasn’t in Ukraine

Sudan is not a one-off. There’s a disturbing resurgence in civil wars

KHARTOUM, SUDAN - APRIL 18: A view of vehicles of RSF, damaged after clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Khartoum, Sudan on April 18, 2023. The Sudanese army on Tuesday agreed to a temporary cease-fire with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). (Photo by Omer Erdem/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) — Image: Getty Images

Apr 17th 2023|KAYIN STATE, MYANMAR, AND PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI

Fighter jets roar over Khartoum. Bombs rattle the Sudanese capital. Many civilians, sheltering from what may be the start of a civil war, wonder: “why?”

It is tempting, and correct, to blame individuals. A conflict cannot erupt unless someone starts fighting, and Sudan has two conspicuous villains. The army’s head is battling a militia boss for control of Africa’s third-largest country. General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Sudan’s de facto ruler, runs a military junta that keeps delaying a promised handover of power to civilians. Muhammad Hamdan Dagalo (better known as “Hemedti”), leads paramilitaries called the Rapid Support Forces, which in an earlier guise committed genocide in Darfur.

This article appeared in the International section of the print edition under the headline “Why are civil wars lasting longer?”