2023 in Sudan

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Decades:	2000s 2010s 2020s
See also:	Other events of 2023 History of Sudan

The following lists events during 2023 in the Republic of the Sudan.

Incumbents

• Chairman of the Sovereignty Council: Abdel Fattah al-Burhan
• Prime Minister: Osman Hussein (acting)
• Deputy Chairman of the Sovereignty Council: Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo

Events

March

• 30 March: Fourteen people are killed and dozens of others are injured by a mine collapse in Northern state.

April

• 13 April: The Sudanese government warns of a possible conflict after the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group mobilizes in several Sudanese cities.
• 15 April:
  • Fighting breaks out across Sudan, mostly in Khartoum where a large battle emerges. three days after the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces mobilized. The RSF claims to have captured Khartoum International Airport, and the presidential palace in Khartoum.
  • Chad closes its border with Sudan as heavy fighting continues between the Sudanese military and rebel forces.
  • Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Libya and Qatar suspend all planes from inside and outside of Sudan due to the ongoing conflicts and closure of several airports; airlines also fear attacks on their planes mainly in Khartoum. Some planes have already been destroyed.
• 16 April: The Sudanese military is said to have retaken control of the presidential palace and other key government installations in Khartoum. The military says Khartoum International Airport remains under the control of Rapid Support Forces, but that it was holding back from launching airstrikes to avoid destroying the airport.
• 17 April:
  • European Union ambassador Aidan O'Hara is assaulted at his home in Khartoum. EU Foreign Affairs High Representative Josep Borrell calls the assault a "gross violation of the Vienna Convention".
  • A Japanese citizen becomes the second foreign death during the Battle of Khartoum.
  • Sudan closes its airspace, cancelling all flights in and out of the country. Kenya likewise suspends all flights to and from Sudan.
  • China, Malaysia, and the United States urge their citizens in Sudan to hide, find shelter, or evacuate the country.
  • De facto leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan declares the Rapid Support Forces to be a rebel group, and orders the group dissolved.
• 18 April:
  • A US convoy is deliberately attacked in Khartoum, hours after the US ordered a ceasefire be put to end the conflict.
  • India instruct its citizens to find shelter or stay indoors immediately.
  • Canada closes its embassy in Sudan fully, advises its citizens to not leave the country for Sudan and puts a Level 4 warning on travel.
• 19 April:
  • Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno says that Japan will send a Self-Defense Forces aircraft to evacuate 60 Japanese nationals from Sudan.
  • Germany and Japan announce their evacuation plans have failed in Khartoum as both tried to evacuate at least 210 civilians and citizens from the embattled capital.
    • Germany later announces the suspension of its attempt to rescue 150 German citizens from Khartoum.
  • The United Kingdom, Germany and Japan urge their citizens to seek shelter, hide or evacuate immediately as fighting rages in Sudan.
  • Egypt announces one of its planes, an "Egyptian MiG-29", was destroyed at an air base in Merowe. It also reports that one of them was captured along with two planes nearly destroyed.
  • The Libyan National Army sends supplies to support the Rapid Support Forces across the country.
• 20 April:
  • A food shortage is reported in Khartoum after several people raid stores and take several supplies, including most of the foods.
  • An American citizen is killed in Khartoum becoming the second confirmed foreign death, hours after evacuation plans were announced by the United States.
  • The United States sends additional troops and equipment to Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, as preparation for a possible evacuation effort of American citizens in Sudan.
• 21 April:
  • Indonesia evacuates 43 of its citizens to its embassy in Khartoum after an Indonesian citizen is injured by a bullet.
  • The Belgian head of the EU humanitarian mission to Sudan, Wim Fransen, is shot in Khartoum.
  • Many countries, including South Korea, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland, announce plans to evacuate all of their citizens or nationals from Sudan.
• 22 April: France and Saudi Arabia announce that they will evacuate their citizens from Sudan, joining the United States and the United Kingdom in doing so.
• 23 April:
  • The Department of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines announces the suspension of all flights to Sudan to ensure the safety of its citizens and raises alerts to level 3 after a Filipino is hit by a stray bullet in Khartoum.
  • Syria suspends all of its flights to Sudan, following the deaths of 11 Syrians in the country.
  • Many countries, including the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, and Canada, evacuate their nationals and some civilians from Khartoum, or announce plans to do so.
  • Canada and the United States suspend all diplomatic operations in Sudan due to the ongoing conflict.
  • Sudan reports a large internet outage across the entire country during the night.
  • Thousands of Sudanese refugees are reported to have entered South Sudan and Egypt.
• 24 April:
  • Switzerland suspends all diplomatic operations in its Khartoum embassy.
  • Brazil, South Africa, Niger and Mexico evacuate more than 100 citizens from Sudan.
• 25 April: The United Kingdom begins a large-scale evacuation of British citizens from Sudan.
• 29 April:
  • Warplanes bomb Khartoum and heavy anti-aircraft artillery is heard in the city as the conflict enters its third week, with the United Nations warning that Sudan is "collapsing".
  • A Turkish evacuation plane is fired at in Khartoum, allegedly by the Rapid Support Forces. No injuries or deaths have been confirmed.
  • The former Prime Minister of Sudan, Abdalla Hamdok, calls the conflict in his country a "nightmare", stating that it could become worse than those in Syria and Libya.
• 30 April: Iran evacuates 65 nationals from Sudan with Saudi Arabian assistance.

May

• 2 May:
  • Battle of Geneina: Rapid Support Forces re-capture Geneina, the capital of West Darfur, after a week of fighting with more than 200 people killed.
  • 2023 Sudanese refugee crisis: The number of Sudanese refugees due to the ongoing civil conflict surpasses 100,000 after only a few days.
• 3 May: The South Sudanese foreign ministry announces that a seven-day ceasefire has been agreed to, lasting from 4 to 11 May.
• 13 May: Ethiopia reports large numbers of Sudanese refugees entering its territory, mainly in the city of Metemma, where nearly 20,000 Sudanese are reported to have entered in a single day.
• 17 May: The United Nations announces a 3 billion dollar plan for the humanitarian and refugee crisis in the country.

June

• 14 June: Killing of Khamis Abakar: The state governor of West Darfur, Khamis Abakar, is killed in Geneina after being abducted by armed men shortly after accusing the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of committing genocide in the state. The RSF denies killing Abakar, blaming "outlaws" for his death.
• 17 June: The Sudanese Air Force launches airstrikes in Khartoum, killing at least 17 people and destroying dozens of homes. The armed forces and the Rapid Support Forces agree to a 72-hour ceasefire.
• 26 June:
  • The Rapid Support Forces take control of the main police base in Khartoum, seizing a large amount of military equipment and ammunition, including 160 pickup trucks, 75 armoured personnel carriers, and 27 tanks.
  • The Sudan People's Liberation Movement–North attacks the town of Kurmuk in Blue Nile, Sudan, prompting hundreds of civilians to flee across the border to Ethiopia.
• 28 June: Airstrikes are reported in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, while heavy fighting takes place in Omdurman despite a ceasefire declared by both sides for the Islamic holiday Eid al-Adha.

July

• 8 July – Battle of Omdurman: At least 22 people are killed by an airstrike in Omdurman, Sudan.
• 13 July – The United Nations reports the discovery of a mass grave in West Darfur, Sudan, believed to contain at least 87 individuals, including women and children, reportedly killed by the Rapid Support Forces and an affiliated Arab militia.
• 21 July – 15 civilians and 19 army officers are killed in a drone attack in Khartoum.

August

• 1 August – Protests begin in Kadugli, South Kordofan against the clashes which are ongoing within the city, also denouncing the war and the violations against women.
• 4 August –
  • Battle of Geneina: Clashes in and around the city of Geneina, Sudan, cause at least 460 deaths and more than 1,000 injuries and result in the Sirba locality being captured by the Rapid Support Forces.
  • Authorities in the Sudanese state of North Kordofan announce a state-wide curfew.
• 6 August – Siege of Zalingei: The Rapid Support Forces claim the state of Central Darfur, after capturing the capital of Zalingei from the Sudanese Armed Forces.
• 8 August – Clashes occur in the Abrof neighborhood of Omdurman, Khartoum, between the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces.
• 15 August – Battle of Nyala:
  • Clashes begin again in Nyala, with at least 43 people confirmed dead along with dozens injured.
  • A shootout along with shelling begins south of Nyala at El Wahda Hospital causing 3 deaths and 30 wounded.
• 16 August – Battle of Geneina:
  • Geneina massacre: More than 1,000 bodies are discovered in 30 mass graves within the RSF-occupied city of Geneina in West Darfur by civil leaders.
  • The number of people who have fled Sudan since April reaches 1.0 million while nearly 3.5 million have been displaced.
• 28 August – Head of the Rapid Support Forces Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo publishes a 10-point plan that proposes a non-symmetrical federal system and a new apolitical Sudanese Army.

September

• 1 September – Siege of El Obeid: Sudanese Armed Forces capture El Obeid, pushing the Rapid Support Forces out of the city, although skirmishes continue on the outskirts of the city.
• 3 September – Five civilians are killed in airstrikes by the Sudanese Armed Forces in Khartoum, a continuation of bombings that killed twenty civilians yesterday.
• 10 September – September 2023 Khartoum airstrike: At least 43 people are killed and dozens more are injured by an airstrike in Khartoum.
• 13 September – Geneina massacre: Thirteen new mass graves are found in Geneina by the United Nations, with an unspecified number of people.
• 18 September – In Khartoum, the Greater Nile Petroleum Oil Company Tower burns down.

Deaths

• 3 May: Asia Abdelmajid
• 5 May: Fozi el-Mardi
• 12 May: Shaden Gardood
• 14 June: Khamis Abakar
• 22 August: Ahmed Abkar Barqo Abdel-Rahman