The war in Sudan’s Darfur region has perplexed experts on Africa and experienced diplomats alike, so it is unsurprising that it has bewildered the wider public. This guide to the conflict answers ten simple questions.
1. Where is Darfur?
Darfur is the westernmost region of Sudan, Africa’s largest country. It straddles the Sahara desert, the dry savannahs and the forests of central Africa. Darfur borders Libya, Chad and the Central African Republic, and is equidistant from Africa’s coasts at the Red sea and Atlantic ocean. It is as large as France, though sparsely populated. The people of Darfur live off the land, cultivating during the rainy season (June-September) and herding animals.
Darfur was an independent sultanate from about 1600 until 1916, when it was merged with neighbouring Sudan as it became the last big territory to be absorbed into the British empire. In an earlier era Darfur had been one of Egypt’s main trading partners—its sultan exchanged letters with Napoleon in 1798. Under the British, Darfur was a backwater ruled by a few colonial officers, who delegated most of their powers to tribal chiefs. After Sudan’s independence in 1956, Darfur was again neglected, with little economic development, few roads and the poorest education and health services in all of Sudan.
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