Sudan conflict: Who are the Rapid Security Forces, up in arms against the country’s military

But this wasn’t always the case. Burhan and Hamdan joined forces to oust authoritarian President Omar al-Bashir in 2019. One reason, according to experts, for their fallout is the growing ambitions of Hamdan to lead Sudan. In recent years, he has amassed vast amounts of wealth, making his RSF stronger and a significant challenger to Burhan’s army.

Who are the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan?

Although formally established in 2013, the RSF can trace its roots to the Janjaweed militias — a group of Arab tribes primarily based in western Sudan, including the contentious region of Darfur. They were first armed and organised in the early 1980s to help the government expand its influence in neighbouring civil-war-torn Chad.

Janjaweed militias, who called themselves horsemen, came into global prominence in 2003 when they helped the Sudanese government quell a rebellion by peasants in Darfur. While the military attacked by using air force and heavy weapons, Janjaweed perpetrated violence against the rebels and civilians in isolated areas.

“Men were mutilated and murdered, women raped, and children kidnapped. Fields and houses were destroyed, wells poisoned, and valuable goods seized,” The Telegraph said in a report.

According to the United Nations, an estimated 300,000 people were killed in the conflict between 2003 and 2008, and 2.5 million more were displaced. In 2007, the United States government led by President George Bush declared the violence in Darfur “genocide” perpetrated by the government and its allied forces, including the Janjaweed militias. Subsequently, the International Criminal Court opened investigations into the genocidal violence, indicting Sudan’s then President Bashir, on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity in 2009.

Despite the backlash, Janjaweed continued to grow, helping Bashir rule the country with an iron-fist. The President gave the group an institutional veneer, as per NYT, in 2013, when it became the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and Hamdan was appointed as its head.

In the following years, RSF carried out brutal violence across Sudan, including committing war crimes in Darfur in 2014 and 2015 when civilians were displaced, raped, looted, and killed. In 2019, the forces killed more than 100 people in the country’s capital, Khartoum, during a pro-democracy protest. Hundreds of unarmed civilians were injured and many more were sent to jail.

How did the RSF become so powerful?

RSF soon after its formal constitution began to expand, owing to its proximity to Bashir. It became his praetorian guard, tasked with protecting the president from any coup attempt by the army, according to Al Jazeera. Then, in 2015, the paramilitary forces along with Sudan’s Army began supplying troops to fight in the war in Yemen to support Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates troops. In return, Hamdan received money and weapons.

Two years later, the forces partnered with the Russian mercenary Wagner Group to mine the vast gold reserves in Sudan. This further helped RSF and Hammad expand their political, economic and political influence — resulting in a conflict with the country’s army chief Burhan.

Today, as per NYT, experts and Western officials “estimate the RSF to number between 70,000 and 150,000 fighters” and its “members include former military and intelligence officers”. The forces have also recruited more fighters from Sudan’s east and north in an attempt to widen their support, the news outlet said.