Yasir Zaidan Explains in ‘Foreign Policy’ Why Sudan’s Pro-Democracy Activist Backing SAF?

Mekki Elmoghrabi
By Idress Hamza February 4, 2025

By Idress Hamza – Nairobi

idressosman21@gmail.com

As Sudan’s catastrophic war entered its second year a glimmer of hope emerged as the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) made significant advances. Recent weeks have seen the SAF reclaim substantial territory in the states of Sennar and Al Jazira, drawing closer to the capital of Khartoum, where it broke the siege of its headquarters. The liberation of Wad Madani, Gezira’s capital, from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), has sparked widespread celebrations among Sudanese citizens internally and externally rekindling hopes of returning home after years of displacement and suffering.

An article analysis published in the Foreign Policy magazine by analyst Yasir Zaidan detailed how the democracy movement an activist, led to the overthrow of President Omer Elbashir in 2019.

He highlighted his visit to Port Sudan last November 2024, where he met some of these young volunteers, known locally as the mustanafareen (recruited), their stories illustrate and indict the profound shift in grassroots activism and the complexities of the current conflict.

He shared the stories of Basil Abdelhamid, Mohamed Ibrahim Fadul, and Hassan Abdelrahman who were in the past they are members of a resistance committee in Kalakla Nighbrohd South of Khartoum.

These young volunteers emphasize that their participation in the conflict is not motivated by political gain but by a desire to protect Sudan’s state institutions and defeat the RSF militia. They remain committed to returning to civilian life and continuing the fight for democracy once the immediate threat is neutralized.

He praised the role of SAF in establishing voluntary recruitment and training centers across Sudan to address its manpower shortage, Having relied on the RSF as its infantry corps before the conflict, emphasizing that SAF faced a critical gap after the RSF’s rebellion.

On the other hand, he pointed out the role of the international community involvement led by the U.S. He criticized the Biden Administration on how Sudan’s War has been defined as a struggle between two equally culpable factions. However, this narrative is increasingly untenable.

He indicated that the new US administration of President Donald Trump is pushing Sudan’s file to be on the top agenda and considered it Sudan’s key strategy for the Horn of Africa stabilization.

Yasir Zaidan is a press writer, doctoral candidate at the University of Washington, and a former National University of Sudan lecturer.

Read Yasir Zaidan article

Mekki Elmoghrabi
By Idress Hamza February 4, 2025