2.18.1. Actors involved and territorial control

During the reference period, the SAF controlled Red Sea state1257 together with national militias of the Sudanese Popular Resistance/Mustanfareen.1258 The SAF have reportedly mobilised members of these militias from local communities.1259 The largest ethnic group in Red Sea state are the Beja with its subgroups of the Hadendowa, Amarar, and Bishari,1260 from which the local militias of the Beja Congress (BC) led by Shaiba Dirar, were formed.1261

There is a territorial dispute between Sudan and Egypt over the Hala’ib triangle border region1262 – historically Sudanese territory currently under Egyptian control.1263 The triangle reportedly offers rich natural resources and ideal conditions for smuggling and trafficking operations beyond Egypt and Sudan.1264 Since the outbreak of the war, the mines in the adjacent area belonging to Sudan (Red Sea state), according to Sudanese administrative maps, have attracted thousands of Sudanese workers. Egypt reportedly carried out repeated military operations to clear the area of the miners, aiming at handing it to an Egyptian mining company.1265 Further external actors’ involvement in Sudan, among them the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Türkiye (see section 1.2.2. International actors in this report), is largely based on strategic interests in the Red Sea,1266 including Port Sudan as a major hub.1267

  • 1257

    Sudans Post, Territorial Control Map – Sudan Conflict (as of June 21, 2026) [Map 1], 22 June 2026, url; Sudans Post, Territorial control map – Sudan Conflict (as of May 10, 2026) [Map], 10 May 2026, url; Soliman, A. and Baldo, S., Gold and the war in Sudan [Map], Chatham House, updated 24 March 2026, url

  • 1258

    Africa Center for Strategic Studies, Mapping the Armed Actors in the Sudan Conflict, 7 July 2026, url

  • 1259

    Abdelrahman, E. E. and STPT, Regional and international dimensions of conflicts in eastern Sudan, 11 August 2025, url, p. 10

  • 1260

    Abdelrahman, E. E. and STPT, Regional and international dimensions of conflicts in eastern Sudan, 11 August 2025, url, p. 12

  • 1261

    Abdelrahman, E. E. and STPT, Regional and international dimensions of conflicts in eastern Sudan, 11 August 2025, url, p. 23

  • 1262

    Al-Saeed, S., The Question No One Asks About Halaib [Blog], 9 July 2026, url

  • 1263

    Al-Saeed, S., The Question No One Asks About Halaib [Blog], 9 July 2026, url; Horn Review, The Hala’ib Triangle: Egypt, Sudan and the Strategic Golden Coast, 21 November 2025, url

  • 1264

    Abdelrahman, E. E. and STPT, Regional and international dimensions of conflicts in eastern Sudan, 11 August 2025, url, pp. 26-27

  • 1265

    Ayin Network, على حدود الذهب والنار.. ماذا حدث في مناجم شمال الوادي؟ [On the border between gold and fire... what happened in the mines of the northern valley?], 21 June 2026, url

  • 1266

    Mohammed, S., The Houthi’s and the Two Flank Campaign across the Red Sea, Horn Review, 22 July 2026, url; CSIS, The Sudan War in 10 Charts, 17 April 2026, url; Sudan Times (The), Over 12 Eritrea-backed militias fighting alongside SAF, 9 March 2026, url

  • 1267

    Mohammed, S., The Houthi’s and the Two Flank Campaign across the Red Sea, Horn Review, 22 July 2026, url; CFR, Conflict and Cooperation in the Red Sea, 3 June 2026, url