Sudan’s war is home-grown, but risks drawing in outsiders

Four dayssafrsf after war began in Khartoum, Sudan’s capital, armed men stormed the home of Muhammad. Ordering the businessman (whose name we have changed for his safety) and his family to leave, the soldiers mounted anti-aircraft guns on the roof of the apartment. Muhammad’s family moved in with relatives in a quieter neighbourhood. But that, too, was soon unsafe as the fighting spread, leaving the streets strewn with bodies.The battle may have started as a narrow power struggle between the official army, known as the Sudanese Armed Forces (), and the Rapid Support Forces (), a militia-turned-paramilitary organisation. But the longer it continues, the greater the risk that it may draw in outsiders because of Sudan’s geopolitical importance.