Sudan (country)

I INTRODUCTION

Sudan (country), republic in northeastern Africa, the largest country of the African continent. It is bounded on the north by Egypt; on the east by the Red Sea, Eritrea, and Ethiopia; on the south by Kenya, Uganda, and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, formerly Zaire); and on the west by the Central African Republic, Chad, and Libya. Sudan has a total area of 2,505,800 sq km (967,490 sq mi). Khartoum is the capital and largest city.

II LAND AND RESOURCES

Sudan has a maximum length from north to south of more than 2,250 km (1,400 mi); the extreme width of the country is about 1,730 km (about 1,075 mi). It is divided into three separate natural regions, ranging from desert in the north, covering about 30 percent of all Sudan, through a vast semiarid region of steppes and low mountains in central Sudan, to a region of vast swamps (the As Sudd region) and rain forest in the south. Major topographical features of Sudan are the Nile River, its headstreams the White Nile and Blue Nile, and the tributaries of these rivers. The White Nile traverses the country from the Uganda border to a point near Khartoum, where it joins the Blue Nile to form the Nile proper. The Blue Nile rises in the Ethiopian Plateau and flows across east central Sudan. Of the Nile tributaries the most important is the `A?barah, which also rises in the Ethiopian Plateau. The Libyan Desert, a barren waste broken by rugged uplands, covers most of Sudan west of the Nile proper. The Nubian Desert lies in the region east of the Nile proper and the `A?barah. The Red Sea Hills are located along the coast. The highest point in Sudan, Kinyeti (3,187 m/10,456 ft), is in the southeast.

A Climate

Sudan has a tropical climate. Seasonal variations are most sharply defined in the desert zones, where winter temperatures as low as 4C (40F) are common, particularly after sunset. Summer temperatures often exceed 40C (110F) in the desert zones, and rainfall is negligible. Dust storms, called haboobs, frequently occur. High temperatures also prevail to the south throughout the central plains region, but the humidity is generally low. In the vicinity of Khartoum the average annual temperature is about 27C (about 80F); and annual rainfall, most of which occurs between mid-June and September, is about 250 mm (about 10 in). Equatorial climatic conditions prevail in southern Sudan. In this region the average annual temperature is about 29C (about 85F), annual rainfall is more than 1,000 mm (40 in), and the humidity is excessive.

B Natural Resources

The primary natural resources of Sudan are water, supplied by the Nile River system, and fertile soil. Large areas of cultivable land are situated in the region between the Blue Nile and the `A?barah and between the Blue Nile and the White Nile. Other cultivable land is in the narrow Nile Valley and in the valleys of the plains region. Irrigation is extensively employed in these areas. The country also has vast areas of grasslands and forests, including acacia forests, the source of gum arabic. Small deposits of many different minerals occur, the most important of which are chromium, copper, and iron ore. Petroleum was discovered in western Sudan in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

C Plants and Animals

Vegetation is sparse in the desert zones of Sudan. Various species of acacia occur in the regions contiguous to the Nile Valley. Large forested areas are found in central Sudan, especially in the river valleys. Among the most common trees are the hashab, talh, heglig, and several species of acacia, notably sunt, laot, and kittr. Trees such as ebony, silag, and baobab are common in the Blue Nile Valley. Ebony, mahogany, and other varieties of timber trees are found in the White Nile Basin. Other species of indigenous vegetation include cotton, papyrus, castor-oil plants, and rubber plants.

Animal life is abundant in the plains and equatorial regions of Sudan. Elephants are numerous in the southern forests, and crocodiles and hippopotamuses abound in the rivers. Other large animals include giraffes, leopards, and lions. Monkeys, various species of tropical birds, and poisonous reptiles are also found, and insects—especially mosquitoes, seroot flies, and tsetse flies—infest the equatorial belt.

D Environmental Issues

Scarce resources, drought, and civil war led to widespread famine and environmental destruction in Sudan during the 1990s. Only 69 percent (2002) of the population has access to a safe supply of fresh water.

Expanding human settlements threaten the country's forests. Traditional fuels such as wood provide 75.10 percent (1997) of Sudan's energy supply, and the demand for charcoal has led to the clearing of many Sudanese forests. Deforestation, overgrazing, and poor land management practices all speed the process of desertification, as the Sahara encroaches onto previously arable and forested land.

The United States Department of State estimates there are more than 1 million land mines buried in Sudan. Sudanese officials believe there may be as many as 3 million mines in the country. Some landmines were laid as part of the desert warfare of World War II (1939-1945), while other mines were deployed during the country's more recent civil conflicts. Sudanese authorities estimate that one-third of the country's territory may be polluted by land mines and unexploded munitions.

Sudan has designated 4.9 percent (2003) of its land as protected areas, but poaching threatens animal populations in these areas and throughout the country. Comprehensive conservation efforts are hampered by the ongoing civil conflict, especially since rebel forces control ecologically rich woodlands in the southern part of the country.

Sudan has ratified international agreements protecting biodiversity, endangered species, and the ozone layer. The country is party to the World Heritage Convention and the African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Sudan also participates in the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Program.

III POPULATION

The population of Sudan is composed principally of Arabs in the north and black Africans in the south; many Arabs are of mixed ancestry. Other ethnic groups in northern Sudan include the Beja, Jamala, and Nubian peoples. The major black ethnic groups in southern Sudan are the Azande, Dinka, Nuer, and Shilluk. Some 70 percent of economically active people are engaged in agricultural or pastoral activities, another 22 are employed in services, and only 9 percent have jobs in manufacturing, construction, and mining.

A Population Characteristics

The 2005 estimated population was 40,187,486, giving the country an overall population density of 17 persons per sq km (44 per sq mi). The most densely settled area is at the juncture of the White Nile and the Blue Nile. Sudan's population is growing at a rate of 2.60 percent (2005) annually.

B Principal Cities and Political Divisions

The principal city is Khartoum, the capital; other major cities include Omdurman and Khartoum North, major industrial centers, and Port Sudan, a seaport on the Red Sea. Sudan is divided into 26 states.

C Religion and Language

About 70 percent of the people of Sudan are Muslims, some 15 percent are Christians, and most of the remainder follow traditional religions. The people of northern Sudan are predominantly Sunni Muslims (Sunni Islam). Most of the people in the south either practice traditional religions or are Christians. The official language of Sudan is Arabic; English is widely spoken, and African languages are used in the south. A program of Arabization is in place to encourage greater use of Arabic in the south.

D Education

Education is free and compulsory in Sudan between the ages of 6 and 13. In the 1998-1999 school year 2.5 million pupils attended elementary schools, and 1 million students were enrolled in secondary schools and vocational institutions. Institutions of higher education include the University of Khartoum (1956), Omdurman Islamic University (1912), the University of Juba (1975), and the College of Fine and Applied Art (1946), located in Khartoum.

E Culture

The northern two-thirds of Sudan is an area of Islamic culture. European culture and religion have influenced the southern peoples, but traditional customs remain strong.

E1 Libraries

The library of the University of Khartoum is noted for its African and Sudanese collection. Other libraries in Sudan include the Flinders Petrie Library, named after British Egyptologist Sir Flinders Petrie, the Geological Research Authority Library, and the Sudan Medical Research Laboratories Library, all of which are in Khartoum. A major collection of historical documents is housed in the National Records Office, in Khartoum.

E2 Museums

The Sudan National Museum, in Khartoum, has collections of ancient artifacts. The Khalifa's House, in Omdurman, contains a collection of relics of the Mahdists (for more information, see the History section of this article). Also of interest are the Sudan Natural History Museum and the Ethnographical Museum, both in Khartoum.

IV ECONOMY

Agriculture continues to dominate the economy of Sudan. Economic growth was virtually nonexistent between the mid-1960s and the early 1990s, when drought and civil war caused the annual gross domestic product (GDP) to fall to a mere $240 per capita. Sudan's huge foreign debt is seen as an obstacle to economic recovery. In 1992 the debt was estimated to be $15 billion, nearly three times the country's gross national product. The GDP began to increase in the mid-1990s; by 2003 it was $17.8 billion.

A Agriculture

The majority of Sudan's population derives its living from crop farming or grazing, but only 7 percent of the country's land area is cultivated. Crop production in 2004 included large quantities of cereal grains, such as sorghum and wheat (6.4 million metric tons); root crops, such as potatoes and yams (171,600 metric tons); fruits, such as dates (979,860 metric tons); and pulses (272,000 metric tons). Sugarcane, processed into sugar by local industry, is also grown. Cotton is Sudan's leading cash crop; it is produced in large amounts in the Al Jaz?rah (Gezira) region between the Blue Nile and White Nile. The livestock population in 2004 included 38.3 million cattle, 47 million sheep, 42 million goats, 3.3 million camels, and 39 million poultry.

B Forestry and Fishing

The major forest product of Sudan is gum arabic, which is an ingredient in candy, perfumes, processed food, and pharmaceuticals. It is also used in printing. In the early 1990s about 40,000 metric tons of gum arabic were produced annually, about four-fifths of the world's supply. Other forestry products include beeswax, tannin, senna, and timber, especially mahogany. The production of timber in 2003 was 19.4 million cubic meters (687 million cubic feet); nearly all of the forest harvest is used for fuel. Fishing is carried on along the rivers and on the coast; the catch in 2001 amounted to 59,000 metric tons.

C Mining

Small amounts of chromium, manganese, and mica are produced. Other exploited minerals include gold, magnesite, and salt.

D Manufacturing

Sudanese manufacturing is in the early stages of development and largely confined to the processing of agricultural products. Textile and paper mills and sugar and petroleum refineries have been established; a number of factories also produce consumer goods such as cigarettes, beverages, and shoes. Construction materials such as cement are manufactured as well.

E Energy

In 2002 Sudan produced 2.6 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity, up from 334 million kilowatt-hours in 1968. Supplies of hydroelectricity from large installations at Khashm al Qirbah and Sennar are supplemented by thermal electricity produced in facilities burning refined petroleum.

F Currency

The official unit of currency is the dinar. In 1992 the dinar replaced the Sudanese pound, with an official exchange rate of 1 dinar to 10 pounds. The pound, however, remains a legal tender (261 pounds equal U.S.$1; 2003 average). Sudan has prohibited the establishment of foreign banks since 1985. The application of Islamic law to banking practices in 1991 put an end to the charging of interest in official transactions.

G Foreign Trade

In 2002 imports totaled $2.49 billion and exports $1.62 billion. Much of the export revenue is accounted for by cotton lint and cottonseed. Other major exports are gum arabic, sorghum, peanuts, and sesame seeds. The principal imports are machinery, petroleum products, transportation equipment, metal goods, and textiles. The main purchasers of Sudan's exports are Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, China, Italy, Japan, and Switzerland; chief sources of imports are Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Germany, and Egypt.

H Transportation and Communications

The Sudanese railroad system, comprising 4,578 km (2,845 mi) of track, links most of the major cities and towns. Supplementing the railroad system is traffic on 5,300 km (3,300 mi) of navigable waterways and 11,900 km (7,394 mi) of roads. Many of the roads, however, are dirt tracks. A paved highway between Khartoum and Port Sudan was completed in 1980. A government-owned airline, Sudan Airways, maintains regular services throughout the country and operates scheduled international flights. Several foreign airlines also serve Sudan.

Telephone, telegraph, and postal services are administered by government monopolies. In 1974 an earth satellite station was opened, which greatly improved international communications. The government's Sudan Broadcasting Service provides radio service in Arabic, English, and several languages spoken in southern Sudan. Television broadcasting was begun in 1962; in the early 1990s about 60 hours per week of programming were telecast. In 2000 there were 406 radio receivers and 239 television sets for every 1,000 inhabitants. Sudan's independent newspapers were closed by the government after the 1989 coup.

I Labor

Some 70 percent of the workforce of Sudan is engaged in agricultural or pastoral occupations. Males make up 70 percent of Sudanese workers. About 1.75 million Sudanese workers belonged to the principal trade union federation, the Sudan Workers Trade Unions Federation, which included 42 affiliated unions, before the union was banned following the 1989 coup.

V GOVERNMENT

A 1989 military coup brought the Revolutionary Command Council, under the leadership of General Omar Hassan al-Bashir, to power in Sudan. The new government held democratic elections in 1996, and a new constitution was approved by public referendum in 1998. This constitution allows multiparty politics and guarantees freedom of thought and religion.

A Executive

The Revolutionary Command Council dissolved itself in 1993 and named Bashir president of a new civilian government. Under the 1998 constitution, the president is directly elected to a five-year term.

B Legislature

Under the 1998 constitution, legislative power is vested in the 360-member National Assembly, with 270 seats directly elected and the rest indirectly elected, all to four-year terms.

C Judiciary

Sudan's judicial system is divided into two major branches, a civil branch handling most cases and an Islamic branch handling only personal and family matters. The civil branch includes a supreme court, courts of appeal, major courts, and magistrates courts.

D Local Government

Under a reorganization program in 1994, Sudan is divided into 26 states. Each state is administered by an appointed governor.

E Defense

In 2003 the armed forces of Sudan numbered about 104,800 active personnel. The army had 100,000 members; the navy, 1,800; and the air force, 3,000.

F Health and Welfare

The government of Sudan operates limited health and welfare programs. In 2005 life expectancy at birth was 59 years.

VI HISTORY

From remote antiquity until relatively recent times the northern portion of the territory comprising modern Sudan formed part of the region known as Nubia. The history of Nilotic, or southern, Sudan before the 19th century is obscure. Egyptian penetration of Nubia began during the period of the Old Kingdom (about 2575-2134 bc). By 1550 bc, when the 18th Dynasty was founded, Nubia had been reduced to the status of an Egyptian province. The region between the Nubian Desert and the Nile River contains numerous monuments, ruins, and other relics of the period of Egyptian dominance, which was ended by a Nubian revolt in the 8th century bc. A succession of independent kingdoms was subsequently established in Nubia. The most powerful of these, Makuria, a Christian state centered at Old Dunqulah and founded in the 6th century ad, endured until the early-14th-century invasion of the Egyptian Mamluks. Another, Alwa, its capital at Soba in the vicinity of present-day Khartoum, was overwhelmed about 1500 by the Funj, black Muslims of uncertain origin, who established a sultanate at Sennar.

During the 16th century, the Funj emerged as a powerful Islamic state, and Sennar became one of the great cultural centers of Islam. Dissension among the leading Funj tribes vastly weakened the kingdom during the final years of the 18th century. In 1820 it was invaded by an Egyptian army. The ensuing war ended in 1822 with a complete victory for Egypt (at that time a province of the Ottoman Empire). The greater part of Nubia thereupon became an Egyptian province, known as the Egyptian Sudan. Turkish-Egyptian rule, which was marked by southward expansion of the province, endured for 60 years. Internal unrest, resulting from the slave trade and general administrative incompetence, mounted steadily during this period. Between 1877 and 1880, when British general and administrator Charles George Gordon served as governor of Egyptian Sudan, efforts were made to suppress the slave trade and other abuses.

A Mahdist Revolt

The anarchic state of affairs that developed after Gordon's resignation culminated in 1882 in a revolution led by Muhammad Ahmad, who in 1881 had proclaimed himself the Mahdi, the person who, according to an Islamic tradition, would rid the world of evil. The rebels won successive victories, including the annihilation of an Egyptian army in November 1883 and the capture of Khartoum in January 1885. With the latter victory, in which Gordon was killed, the Mahdists won complete control over the province.

Conditions in Egyptian Sudan deteriorated under the rule of the Mahdi and of the caliph Abdallah at-Taaisha, who succeeded the Mahdi in 1885. The caliph waged incessant war against the Nilotes, adding large sections of territory to Egyptian Sudan, and undertook various other military adventures, notably an abortive attempt to conquer Egypt in 1889. Economic and social chaos engulfed Sudan during the closing years of the caliph's reign. Meanwhile, Egypt had become a virtual possession of Britain. In 1896 the British and Egyptian governments, alarmed at the spread of French influence in Nilotic Sudan, dispatched a joint military expedition against the caliph. This expedition, led by General Horatio Herbert Kitchener, routed the caliph's forces at Omdurman on September 2, 1898. The Anglo-Egyptian victory brought about the complete collapse of the Mahdist movement. On January 19, 1899, the British and Egyptian governments concluded the agreement that provided for joint sovereignty in Sudan.

B British-Egyptian Sovereignty

Despite growing discontent among Egyptian nationalists, who demanded termination of British authority in Sudan, the Egyptian government concluded a treaty with Britain in 1936 that confirmed, among other things, the convention of 1899. Egyptian antagonism over the arrangement became especially acute following World War II (1939-1945). In 1946 the two nations began negotiations to revise the treaty of 1936. The Egyptian government demanded British withdrawal from Sudan, and the British proposed certain modifications of the existing regime. The negotiations between the two countries ended in deadlock.

On June 19, 1948, after consultations with certain Sudanese officials, the British governor-general in Sudan promulgated reforms purportedly calculated to give the Sudanese experience in self-government as a prerequisite to decisions concerning the ultimate political status of Sudan. The newly authorized legislative assembly was elected in November. Supporters of political groups advocating union with Egypt boycotted the election. In December 1950 the legislative assembly, dominated by groups favoring Sudanese independence, adopted a resolution asking Egypt and the United Kingdom to grant full self-government to Sudan in 1951.

During 1950 and 1951 the Egyptian government continued to demand British withdrawal from Sudan. The legislature denounced the joint sovereignty agreement and the 1936 treaty in October 1951, and it proclaimed Faruk I king of Egypt and Sudan. Anglo-Egyptian negotiations on the status of Sudan were resumed following the forced abdication of King Faruk in July 1952. On February 12, 1953, the two governments signed an agreement providing self-determination for Sudan within a three-year transitional period.

C Sudanization and Independence

In compliance with the provisions of the agreement, the first Sudanese parliamentary elections were held late in 1953. The pro-Egyptian National Unionist Party won a decisive victory. The first all-Sudanese government assumed office on January 9, 1954. Designated “Appointed Day,” the date marked the official beginning of the transitional period of “Sudanization,” a process of replacing all foreigners in responsible governmental and military posts by Sudanese.

The Sudanization program, which was completed in August 1955, accentuated the geographic and social differences between northern and southern Sudan. A mutiny of southern units of the Sudanese army broke out on August 19, and it was put down by government forces. On August 30 the parliament approved a measure stipulating that Sudan should determine its future status by means of a plebiscite. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom and Egypt agreed to withdraw their troops by November 12, 1955. On December 19 the Sudanese parliament, bypassing the projected plebiscite, declared Sudan an independent state.

The Republic of Sudan was formally established on January 1, 1956. Egypt and the United Kingdom immediately recognized the new nation. Sudan became a member of the Arab League on January 19 and of the United Nations on November 12.

D Abboud's Rule

The first general parliamentary elections after Sudan attained independence were held on February 27, 1958. The Umma Party won a majority and formed a new government on March 20. It was overthrown on November 17 by Lieutenant General Ibrahim Abboud, the commander in chief of the armed forces. Abboud, reputedly an advocate of closer relations with Egypt, dismissed parliament, suspended the constitution, declared martial law, and established a cabinet with himself as prime minister.

In November 1964, President Abboud resigned. He was replaced by a supreme council of state. A revolt in southern Sudan that had begun under Abboud against domination by the Arab north continued as a civil war until March 1972, when the south was granted some autonomy. A shift toward a pro-Arab foreign policy was evident after the Arab-Israeli War of 1967.

E Nimeiry's Regime

In 1969 a group of radical army officers, led by Colonel (later Field Marshal) Gaafar Muhammad al-Nimeiry, seized power and set up a government under a revolutionary council. Political tension continued, however, and several coups were attempted. During this period Nimeiry, who became the first elected president of Sudan in 1972, consolidated his power. In early 1973 a new constitution was promulgated. Initially, Nimeiry turned to the Soviet Union and Libya for support, but after coup attempts (1976) allegedly backed by Libya and local Communists, he turned to Egypt, conservative Arab states, and the West for political and economic aid. Relations with the United States, disrupted by the murder of two American diplomats by Arab terrorists in Khartoum in 1973, were also repaired. Nimeiry was the only Arab leader to back Egyptian president Anwar al-Sadat in his peace negotiations with Israel. Sadat's assassination in 1981 left Sudan considerably more vulnerable to the enmity of Libya. The country's stability was also threatened by a large influx of refugees from Eritrea, Uganda, and Chad, which seriously strained its resources.

President Nimeiry won reelection to a third term in April 1983. In September he issued a blanket pardon for some 13,000 prisoners and announced a revision of the penal code to accord with Islamic law (Sharia). Martial law, imposed in April 1984 in the wake of rising tensions with Libya, protests over food price increases, and opposition in the predominantly non-Muslim south to Islamization, remained in force until late September. Renewed unrest led in April 1985 to Nimeiry's ouster in a bloodless military coup.

F Civil War

After a year of military rule, Sadiq al-Mahdi, the great grandson of Muhammad Ahmad, was elected prime minister in the first free election in 18 years. Voting was postponed in 37 southern constituencies, however, due to a guerrilla war led by southern rebels known as the Sudanese People's Liberation Army (SPLA) against the Muslim Arab government. The newly elected assembly was to draft and approve a new constitution and to hold elections every four years. However, severe food shortages, guerrilla unrest, a mounting debt crisis, and other problems weakened the government's power.

In June 1989 a military coup headed by Brigadier Omar Hassan al-Bashir toppled the Mahdi government. A state of emergency was imposed, and Sudan was ruled through a 15-member Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation. Conditions deteriorated in the early 1990s, as the Bashir regime suppressed political opposition and stepped up the war against non-Muslim rebels in the south. In 1993 Bashir took tentative steps toward multiparty democracy, including the dissolution of the military government, but the decision to retain most of his former ministers prompted many to perceive these changes as largely cosmetic.

In January 1994 about 100,000 refugees fled to Uganda when Sudanese troops led an offensive against the SPLA. In March safety zones were established for the transportation of provisions and relief workers to the war-torn south. Throughout 1994 mediators from the Intergovernmental Authority on Drought and Development (IGADD), consisting of representatives from Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, and Eritrea, attempted to negotiate a peace agreement between the Sudanese government and the SPLA. In September the negotiations resulted in the creation of the Supreme Council for Peace, an 89-member body with 38 representatives from the rebel-dominated south. In March 1995 former United States president Jimmy Carter moderated a two-month cease-fire in an effort to allow relief workers to treat cases of river blindness and guinea worm disease in the south. The SPLA resumed its attack in July.

In March 1996 Bashir and his supporters swept presidential and legislative elections. Hassan al-Turabi, the head of a powerful Islamic fundamentalist movement called the National Islamic Front and a national spiritual leader, was elected to the National Assembly and made speaker. In April Sudan faced international condemnation after evidence surfaced linking Bashir's government with a June 1995 assassination attempt on Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak in Ethiopia. In May 1996 the United Nations (UN) levied sanctions against Sudan for refusing to extradite to Ethiopia three suspects in the assassination attempt.

By the mid-1990s the SPLA, led by John Garang, a former officer in the Sudanese army, controlled most of southern Sudan and a number of important towns. However, the government maintained control over Juba, a large city in the far south, and several key southern towns along the Nile and the main roads. Although several smaller rebel groups have signed peace agreements with the government, the SPLA has stated that it will accept nothing less than complete independence for southern Sudan. The Sudanese government has accused Ethiopia, Uganda, Eritrea, and Tanzania of aiding the rebels, but these countries have denied the claims.

In mid-1998 peace talks, the SPLA and the government tentatively agreed to accept an internationally supervised vote on self-determination in the south. However, no date was set for the vote, and the talks failed to produce a cease-fire. Peace talks continued, but they repeatedly stalled over major issues such as the government's unwillingness to separate state and religion and disagreement over where the boundary between north and south would lie. Several temporary cease-fires were called during this time in support of the peace effort and to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid, including the delivery of food and vaccines, to the war-torn south.

In December 1999 a power struggle between Bashir and Turabi came to a head. Turabi attempted to pass constitutional amendments designed to reduce Bashir's presidential powers by calling for the creation of the office of a prime minister, accountable to the National Assembly, and the removal of presidential control over the selection of state governors. In response to this threat to his authority, Bashir dismissed Turabi and declared a state of emergency, dissolving the National Assembly and suspending parts of the constitution.

Sudan's main opposition parties boycotted December 2000 presidential and legislative elections, criticizing the ongoing state of emergency and the fact that voting would not be held in most southern constituencies. Bashir was reelected with 86.5 percent of the vote and his party, the National Congress Party, won 355 of the 360 seats in the National Assembly.

G Recent Developments

In 2003 two rebel groups mounted an armed revolt in the Darf?r region of western Sudan. The rebels accused Sudan's Arab government of neglecting the development of the region, largely populated by black African ethnic groups. Government forces and local Arab militias fought the rebels in 2003 and 2004. In the process, the Arab militias reportedly burned villages, destroyed crops, and raped and killed civilians.

In 2004 UN and U.S. officials accused the Sudanese government of recruiting, supporting, and directing the Arab militias, which the government denied. The government and the rebel groups signed a cease-fire in April 2004, but Arab militia violence continued. In late July 2004 the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding that the Sudanese government disarm and prosecute the militias or face the threat of punitive measures. By 2005 tens of thousands of people had been killed in Darf?r and as many as 2 million made homeless by the conflict.

In January 2005 the Sudanese government and the SPLA signed a comprehensive peace agreement to end Sudan's decades-long civil war. The agreement outlined a six-year transitional period, during which southern Sudan would establish a separate administration and enjoy relative autonomy. According to the agreement, at the end of the six-year period the people of the south would vote on whether or not to secede from Sudan. In March the UN authorized a 10,000-strong peacekeeping force to monitor the implementation of the agreement.

Sudan: Flag and Anthem