DUBAI (AlArabiya.net)
Sorting out Sudan's many conflicts means figuring out who's who in the colorful cast of characters that leads Sudan's many factions. Below is a brief guide to the main players on Sudan's stage of disaster.
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President Omar al-Bashir Omar Hassan al-Bashir, Sudan’s embattled president who came to power in a 1989 military coup that ousted Prime Minister Sadeq al-Mahdi, brother-in-law of al-Turabi (see below). He is now accused of genocide in Darfur and the International Criminal Court has issued a warrant for his arrest.
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Khalil Ibrahim (JEM) Khalil Ibrahim – Born in Darfur, he is part of the Zaghawa tribe. He is the leader of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) founded by Muslims in Darfur who support PNC leader Hassan al-Turabi. He helped organize the fight against Garang’s SPLM. The JEM attacked Sudan’s capital in May, the first time fighting had reached the capital despite decades of fighting.
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Hassan al-Turabi (PNC) Islamist leader Hassan al-Turabi, head of the Popular National Congress (PNC), was arrested in 2001 after signing a memorandum of understanding with the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), the armed wing of the rebel SPLM, whose National Islamic Front (NIF) masterminded Bashir's 1989 coup against Sadeq al-Mahdi and reportedly allowed al-Qaeda to stay in Sudan.
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John Garang (SPLM) John Garang – A Christian from the Dinka tribe, the American-educated rebel leader who led the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLM) for 20 years was appointed vice-president three weeks before his untimely death in July 2005. He died under suspicious circumstances when his helicopter crashed following a meeting with ally Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni.
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Minni Minawi (SLA) Minni Minawi – Zaghawa leader who headed the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA). He agreed to sign the 2006 Abuja Peace Agreement and become part of the government, although the other SLA leader Abdulhawid Mohammed Nur, a member of the Fur tribe, did not.
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Jibril Abdel Karim Bari, (NMRD) Jibril Abdel Karim Bari, known as Tek - a former colonel in Chad and a member of the Zaghawa, he is head of the National Movement for Reform and Development (NMRD), which splintered from JEM in 2004 and is believed to get support from Chad. He is on the list of those subject to U.N. financial sanctions because of accusations of war crimes.
Idriss Deby - Chad's President survived an attack on his capital by rebels he says were backed by Sudan, although Khartoum denied this. Also a member of the Zaghawa tribe, he supported Ibrahim’s recent attack on the Sudan’s capital.
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