Sudan leaves IGAD over regional bloc’s attempt to end war

Sudan has suspended its membership in the North-East African organisation, IGAD in an attempt to resolve the country’s horrific conflict.

Igad has been attempting to bring an end to the nine-month conflict between Sudan’s army and a rival paramilitary force known as the Rapid Support Forces.

Khartoum now claims that a statement issued by Igad was derogatory to Sudan.

The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (Igad) was established in 1996 and is comprised of eight states: Kenya, Uganda, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan, and Somalia.

Its present goal is to develop northeast Africa into an upper-middle-income economy and a “continental beacon of regional peace, stability, and security by 2050”.

Igad was extensively involved in the 2005 peace process that ended Sudan’s separate 22-year war, and the group also managed the establishment of a transitional government in 2004, during a Somali civil conflict.

Igad’s armed troops also served as a predecessor to the African Union operation that is currently addressing Somalia’s insecurity.

According to the United Nations, the war has forced more than seven million people have been forced to flee their homes to safer locations inside and outside Sudan.

Hundreds of civilians were airlifted out of Sudan at the onset of the war as fighting reached residential areas.

The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, an analyst group, puts the death toll at more than 13,000.

Since late December, Gen Daglo has toured several African countries, such as Ethiopia, Kenya, and South Africa, holding meetings with heads of state.