CAIRO (AP) – Tensions have been brewing for weeks between Sudan’s two most powerful generals, who just 18 months ago jointly organized military coup to disrupt the country’s transition to democracy.

Over the weekend, these frictions between the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, General Abdel-Fattah Burhanand head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, General Mohammed Hamdan Dagalobroke into unprecedented battle for control of a resource-rich nation of over 46 million people.

Both men, each with tens of thousands of troops stationed in the capital Khartoum alone, vowed not to negotiate or cease fire despite growing global diplomatic pressure. This is a fatal setback for a country at the crossroads of the Arab world and Africa, which four years ago, the rule of a long-term dictator was brought to an end, largely due to peaceful popular protests.

Look how Sudan a country with a long history of coup d’étatreached this point and what is at stake.

There have been talks in recent months to return to the democratic transition that was halted by the October 2021 coup.

Under growing international and regional pressure, the armed forces and the RSF have signed preliminary deal in December with pro-democracy and civic groups. But the agreement, brokered by the international community, provided only broad outlines, leaving the most pressing political issues unresolved.

During the harrowing negotiations to reach a final agreement, tensions between Burhan and Dagalo escalated. The key dispute is how the RSF will be integrated into the military and who will have ultimate control over the fighters and weapons.

The Dagalo, whose RSF engaged in violent repression during tribal riots and pro-democracy protests, also tried to portray himself as a pro-democracy transition. in March, Hey, Burhan slammedstating that the military leaders are unwilling to give up power.

Analysts say Dagalo is trying to whitewash the reputation of his militias, which began as brutal militias involved in atrocities in the Darfur conflict.

On Wednesday, the RSF began deploying forces around the small town of Merowe, north of the capital. The city is of strategic importance, with its large airport, central location and electric dam downstream of the Nile River. The next day, the RSF also sent additional forces to the capital and other areas of the country without the consent of the army leadership.

Fighting broke out Saturday morning at a military base south of Khartoum, with each side accusing the other of instigating the violence. Since then, the military and the RSF have fought each other with heavy weaponry, including armored vehicles and truck-mounted machine guns, in densely populated areas of the capital and the adjacent town of Omdurman. The military launched airstrikes on RSF bases.

By Monday, dozens of people had been killed and hundreds wounded in the fighting.

Clashes have spread to other parts of the country, including the strategic coastal city of Port Sudan on the Red Sea and eastern areas along the borders with Ethiopia and Eritrea. Fighting was also reported in the war-ravaged area of ​​Darfur, where UN installations were attacked and looted. The UN says three World Food Program workers were killed in clashes on Saturday.

The prospects for an immediate ceasefire seem bleak. Burkhan and Dagalo dug in, demanding that the others surrender. The intense nature of the fighting may also make it difficult for the two generals to return to negotiations.

On the other hand, both the military and the RSF have foreign patrons who unanimously call for an immediate cessation of hostilities.

The Muslim religious calendar may also play a role. Fighting broke out in the last week of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, and at the end of that week, the three-day Eid al-Fitr holiday marked the end of the month of fasting. The population is increasingly in need, many are forced to stay at home due to violence.

Meanwhile, there was a flurry of diplomatic contacts. The UN Security Council is due to discuss Sudan on Monday.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said he had discussed developments in Sudan with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The Saudi foreign minister said he spoke on the phone separately with Burhan and Dagalo and urged them to stop “all kinds of military escalation.”

The Arab monarchies of the Persian Gulf are close allies of the armed forces as well as the RSF.

Cameron Hudson, a senior think-tank at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a former U.S. diplomat, said the Biden administration must press its allies in the region to push for peace.

“Without such pressure, we might find conflict with the same model war in Tigray (in Ethiopia ),” He said.

During the years-long rule of dictator Omar al-Bashir, who was ousted in 2019, Russia was the dominant power. At some point, Moscow reached an initial agreement to build a Sudanese naval base on the Red Sea coast.

After al-Bashir was overthrown, the United States and European countries began to compete with Russia for influence in Sudan, rich in natural resources, including gold, but mired in civil strife and military coups. In recent years A Russian mercenary unit of Wagner even invaded in the country.

Burhan and Dagalo also developed close ties with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Sudanese troops drawn from the armed forces and the RSF have fought alongside the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen’s protracted civil war.

Egypt, another regional power, also has close ties to the Sudanese military. The two armies are holding regular military exercises, most recently this month. Egyptian troops were at the Sudanese military base for exercises when clashes erupted on Saturday. They were caught by the RSF who said they would be returned to Egypt.

The military controls most of the country’s economy, but the RSF controls large gold mining areas, a key source of income for the powerful faction.