Sudan’s original ‘Janjaweed’ leader sides with army against tribal foe

Sudan’s notorious tribal leader Musa Hilal has pledged support for the army in a move that could divide Arabs in Darfur.

In a new twist in Sudan’s civil war, a notorious tribal chief has re-emerged from obscurity to support the army.

Named Musa Hilal, he is the original leader of the nomadic (also referred to as “Arab”) tribal militias, known as the Janjaweed, responsible for atrocities during the Darfur War that started in 2003.

In that war, Hilal fought alongside Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo as part of the Sudanese government’s war on sedentary farming tribes (referred to as “non-Arab” tribes) that had rebelled against the state. More than 300,000 people were killed due to armed conflict as well as disease and famine brought on by the war, according to the United Nations.

More than two decades later, Hemedti finds himself embroiled in another conflict, heading the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) – which grew out of the Janjaweed – in an existential fight against the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).

Last week, Hilal broke his silence on the now year-long conflict, telling his supporters that he “stands with the army”, and adding that he had been asked by local tribes to “prioritise state stability and peace”.