Calls for a ceasefire have gone largely unheeded
Good evening,
A bitter fallout between the two most powerful figures in Sudan's military government has spiralled into violence. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the country's de facto leader, and Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, head of the paramilitary force RSF, collaborated in overthrowing the country's former president in 2019.
But in the latest bloody tussle, which has left hundreds of people dead, neither of the warring generals are willing to come together to negotiate.
| Hollie Clemence
Executive Editor |
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| TODAY'S BIG QUESTION | | Fierce fighting between the Sudanese army and a rival militia has killed at least 300 people, including three UN workers, and raised fears that the country is on the brink of a civil war that could unsettle the entire region.
Most of the fighting took place in the capital Khartoum, trapping its residents inside homes, schools and mosques. Sudan's de facto leader, army general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, came under attack in his own palace; tanks were reportedly deployed on the streets; and video footage showed aircraft ablaze at the city's international airport.
Violence was also reported elsewhere in the country, including in Port Sudan, the country's principal port on the Red Sea, and in the western province of Darfur. The conflict pits members of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) loyal to al-Burhan against the paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Force (RSF), led by the former warlord Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo.
Together, the two generals helped to overthrow the country's long-standing dictator Omar al-Bashir in 2019, following months of pro-democracy protests. Two years later, they staged their own coup to depose a transitional civilian government; Dagalo served as al-Burhan's deputy on the new ruling council. But subsequently a bitter power struggle developed over control of Africa's third-largest country, its rich supply of mineral resources and the large share of the economy that is run by the military. |
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IN DEPTH | | A "breakaway province", a "government-in-exile", a "separate nation" – Taiwan's status has dominated discussions on China for decades.
A self-ruled island of 24 million people separated from the mainland by 100 miles of sea, it is, according to The Wall Street Journal, "a vibrant democracy that produces most of the world's advanced computer chips". But Taiwan is "also a critical piece of [Xi Jinping's] goal of restoring China's standing as a great power".
China's leader has said that taking control of the island is a task that "should not be passed down from generation to generation" and with relations at their lowest point in decades, long-simmering tensions risk boiling over into a full-blown conflict that could have huge geopolitical implications. |
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SPEED READS | | Spanish TV star has grandchild using the sperm of her dead son |
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WHAT THE SCIENTISTS ARE SAYING… | | Giving women a third scan near the end of pregnancy would be a "game-changer", a new study suggests. In the UK, pregnant women routinely have scans at 12 and 20 weeks, but are only referred for another in the third trimester if a potential risk is identified. The study, led by Prof Asma Khalil at St George's Hospital, University of London, compared outcomes between those who were given two scans and those who had an extra ultrasound or hand-held scan, at two NHS Foundation Trust hospitals: St George's University Hospital in London, and Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital in Norfolk. The results, published in the PLOS Medicine journal, suggest that having a scan at 36 or 37 weeks would cut undiagnosed breech births by 70% (at the end of pregnancy, about 4% of babies are unexpectedly in a breech position, with the baby's feet or bottom first, which puts them at higher risk of needing to go to the neonatal unit, or even suffering a brain injury or death). The babies of women who had the third ultrasound were 16% less likely to be admitted to the neonatal unit for closer monitoring and were also less likely to need an emergency caesarean.
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IT WASN'T ALL BAD | | Good news stories from the past seven days |
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| picture of the day | | Cars are left piled on top of one another after a car park in New York partially collapsed on Tuesday. One person died and five others were injured.
AP Photo/Mary Altaffer
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Good week for... | Harry Potter fans, with confirmation that Max (the streaming service formerly known as HBO Max) is making a new TV series based on J.K. Rowling's books, with the author herself acting as executive producer. It's reported that the series will be made over a decade, with a season dedicated to each of the seven books. | |
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Bad week for... | Ultra marathons, after a Scottish competitor was disqualified from the GB Ultras Manchester to Liverpool race, for travelling part of the route in a car. Joasia Zakrzewski became the subject of an inquiry after mapping data showed that she'd covered a mile in one minute and 40 seconds. She said that she had felt unwell on the day, and apologised for not withdrawing. | |
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PUZZLES | | Test your general knowledge with The Week's daily crossword, part of our puzzles section |
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instant opinion | | Your digest of analysis from the British and international press from the past seven days
Succeeding Nicola Sturgeon "was never going to be easy", writes Dani Garavelli for The Guardian, but Humza Yousaf's "haunted expression suggests he had no idea of the toxicity of the chalice being offered him by those who purported to be friends". She adds that "what appears undeniable is that Yousaf has been used as a fall guy, put out to catch the bullets Sturgeon escaped by leaving the frontline". Yousaf has talked about the SNP "getting its house in order". To do so "he needs to be ruthless in his approach towards those who presided over its current crisis", Garavelli says. "Admittedly, it is difficult for Yousaf to seize control when he doesn't know who will be arrested next, or where it will all end," she writes. "But there is no chance of him functioning as a credible first minister until his party has won back public trust." |
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| Theatre review | | Swan Theatre reopens with stage adaptation of Maggie O'Farrell's novel |
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DOWN TO BUSINESS | Thursday afternoon markets | Shares in Tesla have taken a tumble after the electric car manufacturer reported a 24% drop in net income for the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same period last year.
FTSE 100: 7,887.97, down 0.14%
Dax: 15,775.19, down 0.76%
Dow: 33,742.92, down 0.45%
Dollar: £1 = $1.2456, up 0.14%
Euro: £1 = €1.1342, down 0.10%
Brent crude: $81.61, down 1.82%
Gold: $1,998.00, up 0.14% | |
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WIT & WISDOM | "ChatGPT: the parrot that has swallowed the internet and can burp it back up again." | Andrew Orlowski in The Daily Telegraph | |
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