{"id":60237,"date":"2026-01-23T19:54:42","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T16:54:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/?p=60237"},"modified":"2026-01-23T19:54:42","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T16:54:42","slug":"political-shift-in-sudan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/23\/political-shift-in-sudan\/","title":{"rendered":"Political Shift in Sudan"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Suleiman Al-Aqeeli<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The declaration by the Ansar Entity \u2014 the historic religious and social organization of Mahdist followers \u2014 of its full support for the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, represents a striking strategic shift in Sudan\u2019s political and religious landscape. This development comes amid deep political fragmentation and security collapse produced by the civil war ongoing since April 2023.<\/strong><\/p>\n

On January 22, 2026, the group\u2019s leader, Ahmed al-Mahdi, formally delivered a document titled \u201cCovenant and Charter,\u201d affirming the Ansar\u2019s alignment with the army in what he termed the \u201cWar of Dignity\u201d against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). He praised the army\u2019s military gains, which he said had facilitated the return of civilians to their earia, and asserted that Sudan would remain \u201ca homeland resilient to conspiracies.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

This position signals an attempt by the Ansar Entity to reclaim its national role and consolidate its social and political base behind the army\u2014particularly in light of the internal divisions afflicting the historically Ansar-linked National Umma Party. Ahmed al-Mahdi\u2019s current stands in contrast to earlier leadership figures, notably Sadiq al-Mahdi, who died in Abu Dhabi and whose political legacy was shaped in that context. His approach was closer to neutrality and was at times accused of offering implicit support to Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemeti), allegedly based on regional ties with the United Arab Emirates.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This shift strengthens the army\u2019s political position, granting it broader popular, religious, and symbolic legitimacy, at a time when the RSF\u2019s standing is declining due to its dependence on external backing and limited local support networks.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The development coincides with growing regional support for the Sudanese army from Egypt and Saudi Arabia, both of which are working to curb Emirati supply routes to the RSF through Lybia. This effort includes pressure on Khalifa Haftar and the signaling of potential economic and military alternatives for Khartoum. The regional movement reflects a broader strategic vision aimed at safeguarding border stability and preventing the disintegration of the Sudanese state\u2014extending beyond purely military calculations to wider political and security considerations.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Conversely, the RSF faces a marked erosion of both domestic and international legitimacy. A report by the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission in September 2025 described its conduct as involving \u201cwidespread war crimes\u201d and \u201ccrimes against humanity,\u201d including genocide, rape, and starvation campaigns in El-Fasher and Darfur. This was followed by U.S. and European sanctions that deepened its regional and international isolation and intensified internal fractures, particularly in eastern and northern regions.<\/strong><\/p>\n

While the Ansar\u2019s endorsement of the army may accelerate the formation of a new national alignment strengthening central state authority in northern and eastern Sudan, its overall impact may remain limited. This raises the risk of a prolonged war unless accompanied by firm international pressure to halt the flow of Emirati weapons to RSF militias. Under current conditions, 2026 appears likely to witness the continuation of conflict, with the danger of Sudan sliding into a chronic war system in which armed loyalties intersect with regional power calculations\u2014far removed from comprehensive political solutions.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This trajectory may only change if the Sudanese army receives sufficient support to preserve national unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, while simultaneously launching an inclusive political initiative capable of laying the foundations for a sustainable settlement.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Suleiman Al-Aqeeli The declaration by the Ansar Entity \u2014 the historic religious and social organization of Mahdist followers \u2014 of its full support for the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, represents a striking strategic shift in Sudan\u2019s political and religious landscape. This development comes amid deep political fragmentation and security …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":60238,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-60237","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60237","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60237"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60237\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":60239,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60237\/revisions\/60239"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/60238"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60237"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60237"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sudanevents.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60237"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}