New HSBA Briefing Paper on the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan

After almost two years of war, Sudan is in the grip of a humanitarian and political catastrophe. A conflict between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continues to devastate the country. In recent months, the RSF has lost ground, and its efforts to create a government seem likely to come to naught. But what is the RSF, and what can learning about the paramilitary organization tell us about the future of Sudan?

The Republic of Kadamol: A Portrait of the Rapid Support Forces at War is a new Briefing Paper from the Small Arms Survey’s Human Security Baseline Assessment for Sudan and South Sudan (HSBA) project. Based on interviews on the ground and with RSF personnel, the paper offers an insight into RSF recruitment strategies, war aims, and command and control problems. To understand Sudan's future, it is indispensable to understand the RSF, and this paper is the first to give a synthetic analysis of the RSF since the war began.

Read: The Republic of Kadamol: A Portrait of the Rapid Support Forces at War

For more, check out:

• Living with Lobong: Power, Gold, and the UPDF in Eastern Equatoria (November 2024)—a Situation Update that explores Lobong’s grasp on the state.
• Port Sudan: The Political Economy of a Potential Administrative Capital (April 2024)—a Situation Update that explores the fragile political landscape in and surrounding the city.
• Nuba Hopes and Fears: Fuelling SPLA-North Mobilization in South Kordofan (March 2024)—a Situation Update that examines the clashes between the three main political stakeholders in South Kordofan, Sudan.
• Pay Day Loans and Backroom Empires: South Sudan’s Political Economy since 2018 (October 2023)—a Briefing Paper on the predatory nature of the political economy in South Sudan
• The Human Security Baseline Assessment (HSBA) project page
• South Sudan outputs in our Resource Library

Other news from the Survey:

• New Survey how-to guides on meaningful participation and gender-responsive action plans
• New Situation Update on civilian firearm possession in Ukraine
• New HSBA Situation Update on the UPDF in Eastern Equatoria, South Sudan
• New SANA Situation Update on Tunisia’s immigration crisis and Briefing Paper on Türkiye’s strategy in Libya
• New Situation Update on trends in firearms trafficking in the Caribbean and Latin America