← The Horn
What Does Sudan’s RSF Want? artwork

What Does Sudan’s RSF Want?

The Horn
S6 E1932:18
Play episode

Show notes

In this episode of The Horn, Alan is joined by analyst and researcher Sarra Majdoub to take a closer look at Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and their evolving military and political objectives. They discuss the RSF’s recent loss of control in Khartoum to the Sudanese Armed Forces, and the group’s strategic pivot toward consolidating power in Darfur and the Kordofan regions even as those areas suffer from a deepening humanitarian crisis. They unpack the RSF’s emerging new political strategy, including their recent alliance with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) and efforts to establish a parallel government with allied armed groups. They also discuss the RSF’s new long-range drone capabilities and why the group decided to escalate the conflict by launching strikes into eastern Sudan, including on Port Sudan. Finally, they explore whether the RSF is preparing for a lengthy war and protracted stalemate, if the group is positioning for a negotiated settlement to the war, or both. For more, check out our statement “Two Years On, Sudan’s War is Spreading”, our recent analyst’s notebook entries: “Capture of Tri-border Area Marks Another Twist in Sudan’s Civil War”, “Battle for Darfur Reaches Fever Pitch as Sudan’s War Enters Third Year”, “London Conference Puts Paralysed Sudan Peace Efforts on Display” and our Sudan page. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

More from this show

More
  1. Ethiopia and Eritrea, On the Cusp of War

    In this episode of The Horn, Alan is joined by Michael Woldemariam, associate professor at the University of Maryland, to discuss the conflict in northern Ethiopia and whether it c…

    S8 E439:35
  2. Bonus Episode | How Close Are Ethiopia and Eritrea to All-out War?

    Today on The Horn, we are bringing you a bonus episode on the rising risk of war between Ethiopia and Eritrea from Crisis Group's Global Podcast Hold Your Fire!. This week on Hold…

    39:28
  3. Inside Sudan’s War

    In this episode of The Horn, Alan is joined by Yousra Elbagir, Sky News’s Africa correspondent and winner of the RTS Network Television Journalist of the Year award 2026, to discus…

    S8 E358:14
  4. Bonus Episode | Back to War in Ethiopia?

    Today on The Horn, we are bringing you a bonus episode on Ethiopia from Crisis Group's Global Podcast Hold Your Fire!. In this episode, Richard Atwood speaks with Crisis Group’s A…

    37:35
  5. Bonus Episode | Two Shores, One Sea: The Horn of Africa and West Asia in a Contested Red Sea

    Today we're sharing a bonus episode from the WASSAP podcast, where Alan joins hosts Désirée Custers and Hubert Kinkoh to explore the growing interconnectedness of the Horn of Afric…

    43:00
  6. The Houthis, the Saudis and the New Red Sea Politics

    In this episode of The Horn, Alan is joined by Crisis Group’s Arabian Peninsula director Yasmine Farouk and senior Yemen analyst Ahmed Nagi to explore why Yemen’s truce is unravell…

    S8 E247:11
Now Playing
The Horn — What Does Sudan’s RSF Want? | Podcast | Josplay Music