Sudan, Independence and Devolution

Anglo-Egyptian Sudan was a condominium of the United Kingdom and Egypt between 1899 and 1956, corresponding to the territory of what is now both North and South Sudan, as well as parts of south eastern Libya.

Legally, sovereignty and administration were shared between both Egypt and the United Kingdom, but in practice the structure of the condominium ensured effective British control over Sudan, with Egypt having limited local power and influence.  In the meantime, Egypt itself fell under increasing British influence.

Following the Egyptian revolution of 1952, Egypt pushed for an end to the condominium, and the independence of Sudan. An agreement struck between Egypt and the United Kingdom in 1953 saw Sudan granted independence as the Republic of the Sudan.

On 1 January 1956. In 2011, the south of Sudan itself became independent as the Republic of South Sudan.

The western region of the country, known as Darfur, became the scene of a rebellion in 2003 against the Arab-dominated Sudanese government, with two local rebel groups – the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA) – accusing the government of oppressing non-Arabs in favour of Arabs.

The government was also accused of neglecting the Darfur region of Sudan. In response, the government mounted a campaign of aerial bombardment supporting ground attacks by an Arab militia, the Janjaweed. The government-supported Janjaweed were accused of committing major human rights violations, including mass killing, looting, and systematic rape of the non-Arab population of Darfur.

They have frequently burned down whole villages, driving the surviving inhabitants to flee to refugee camps, mainly in Darfur and Chad. Many of the camps in Darfur were surrounded by Janjaweed forces. By the summer of 2004, 50,000 to 80,000 people had been killed and at least a million had been driven from their homes, causing a major humanitarian crisis in the region.

The Janjaweed were formally restructured into the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in 2013 so were transferred from a loose Arab Militia to a State sanctioned paramilitary force.