Glossary

A collective reference referring to camel herders, mostly from Arab tribes such as the Rizeigat and Beni Halba. This is in contrast to other groups from the same tribes known as the Baggara referring to cow herders.

General Commander of the Sudan Liberation Army – Abdel Wahid faction (SLA-AW).

Unidentified groups and individuals engaged in general banditry. Bandits predominantly are involved in armed robberies and operate mostly in areas of chronic instability.

Arsod uses the term contested land use to group together incidents that occur predominantly between pastoralists and farmers. Pastoralist-farmer conflict in Darfur is a root cause of long-term insecurity in the region. Traditional migratory routes for pastoralists have been altered as a consequence of climate change, as has the portion of arable land for farmers. The increasing scarcity of fertile land has fostered competition for resources as both parties are reliant on suitable land for their livelihoods. Native administrations were previously key actors in settling disputes and negotiating land access; however, successive governments have undermined such institutions and endeavours, and have furthermore sought to use the conflict in order to pursue their own interests.

The Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC) are a collection of political parties, armed opposition, social movements, trade unions and community groups. In total 22 signatories signed the Declaration of Freedom and Change on January 1st 2019. The declaration called for the end of the regime of President Omar Al-Bashir and for the formation of a Transitional Government to establish a democratic system leading to free and fair elections at a suitable time.

The General Intelligence Services (GIS) is the intelligence service of Sudan. On July 29th, 2019, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan ,in his position as Chairman of the Transitional Military Council (TMC), issued Constitutional Decree number 33. This Constitutional Decree changed the name of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) to the General Intelligence Services (GIS). It furthermore limited its mandate through amendments of several articles of the 2010 National Security Act, notably limiting the organisation to intelligence gathering and analysis thereby removing its ability to arrest and detain individuals. Chief of GIS – Lieutenant General Abu Bakr Mustafa (appointed April 23rd, 2019, replacing Salah Abdallah Mohamed Saleh A.K.A Salah Gosh)

The Janjaweed are a collection of mostly Arab militias operating in Darfur. Members are predominantly from the Abbala and Baggara groups and often fought for the Government of Sudan in the Darfur conflict whilst at the same time asserting their own political, social and economic control over large sections of Darfur through violence and direct targeting of the civilian population. In 2013, a significant portion of the Janjaweed were formalised into the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) under the command of General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, A.K.A Hemedti, a former Janjaweed commander. However, not all militias described as Janjaweed were incorporated into the RSF. Arsod aims to distinguish between the formal RSF and the remnants of the Janjaweed where possible. Though the terms are often confused and used interchangeably by victims and observers alike.

The National Congress Party (NCP) was a political party formed by President Omar Al-Bashir and it was established for the purpose of supporting his rule. The NCP was established in the mid to late 1990s following a power struggle within the National Islamic Front (NIF) between President Omar Al-Bashir and Hassan Al-Turabi. Hassan Al-Turabi then went on to form the Popular Congress Party (PCP).

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) were established as a paramilitary wing under the control of the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) in 2013. The RSF were formed from large sections of the Janjaweed militias operating in Darfur, mostly from individuals and groups within the Arab Abbala and Baggara communities. Commander-In-Chief - General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, A.K.A Hemedti

The Sudan Liberation Army – Abdel Wahid (SLA-AW) is an armed opposition movement from Darfur operating in the Jebel Marra region. It is notably a Fur movement. The SLA-AW split from the Sudan Liberation Army following tensions between the Fur and Zaghawa in the mid-2000s, in addition to competing objectives and tactics. SLA-AW has largely refused to engage in peace talks with the Government of Sudan unless its preconditions are met, including the dismantling of the Janjaweed and Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) are the official military force of the Republic of Sudan.