The fate of some of Africa’s most important strategic resources is hanging in the balance as Sudan’s top two generals vie for supremacy, from the waters of the Nile and access to crucial shipping lanes to some of the continent’s largest gold mines.
These riches have long caught the eye of outside powers, including Russia, Egypt and the petrostates of the Gulf. Now, some are trying to influence the outcome of the conflict, by offering weapons and other military support to the rival factions, moves that could drag out a lethal confrontation between Sudan’s military and a state-sponsored militia in which hundreds of people have already been killed.
