How young Sudanese are still fighting for democracy
The youthful committees that toppled Sudan’s dictator have not given up
Civil-society activism in Africa can sometimes seem like an exercise in empty sloganeering: “mobilising the grassroots”, “empowering the youth”, and so on. Not in Sudan, where in recent years thousands of neighbourhood “resistance committees” have sprung up throughout the country. Forged in 2018 in the furnace of revolt, they began as autonomous networks of local protesters aimed at toppling Omar al-Bashir, an Islamist despot accused of genocide by the International Criminal Court, and at shepherding the country towards democracy.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “La résistance”
Middle East & Africa January 21st 2023
- Turkey eyes reconciliation with a Syrian regime it tried to topple
- Binyamin Netanyahu rushes to take on Israel’s Supreme Court
- Iran and its Arab neighbours are divided over a name
- How young Sudanese are still fighting for democracy
- South Africa’s disintegrating freight railway is crippling firms
- Why Zimbabwe’s schools have taken to selling chickens
From the January 21st 2023 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionDiscover more
Israel and Hizbullah strike a fragile deal to end their war
Joe Biden’s last roll of the dice on peace in the Middle East
The arrest warrant is a diplomatic disaster for Netanyahu
But may also undermine the International Criminal Court
Israel’s hardliners reckon Gaza’s chaos shows they must control it
Only 11 out of a recent convoy of 109 aid trucks managed to get in
Why GM crops aren’t feeding Africa
Despite decades of research, few countries grow them there
A genocidal militia’s quest for legitimacy
A warring party in Sudan claims it wants to talk peace
Get ready for “Maximum Pressure 2.0” on Iran
The Trump White House may bomb and penalise the regime into a deal