Sudan's Islamist Factions Threaten Internal Coup in Port Sudan

Accusations are escalating within the Port Sudan camp that remnants of the former regime and the Muslim Brotherhood organization have hijacked decision-making inside the military institution. Reports indicate the group is seeking to seize control of the war's trajectory and steer it toward a political agenda that guarantees its return to power, placing the camp on the brink of internal explosion. Amid this intense struggle for influence, expectations are rising for a series of coups and internal purges that could shatter existing alliances and reshape the power map on the ground.

Sudanese politicians believe the intensifying disputes between Islamist currents and Port Sudan forces reflect a crisis that can no longer be hidden, especially as international pressure mounts to exclude the Islamic movement from any future arrangements. They warn that eastern Sudan is headed for bloody events as a result.

Islamist Control Over the Military

Hasab al-Nabi Mahmoud Hasab al-Nabi, head of the Democratic Liberation Movement of Sudan and a member of the leadership body of the Sudanese Founding Alliance, stated that elements of the former regime ignited the current war and now fully control the military institution and what remains of security and civilian bodies. He specifically pointed to the decision-making group within Port Sudan led by Kamel Idris.

Speaking to Erem News, Hasab al-Nabi noted that since the group was designated a terrorist organization, both the international and regional communities have adopted a clear position demanding accountability and ensuring the group has no part in Sudan's future. He explained that these factors have intensified the group's political activity while simultaneously fueling internal conflict, with the rift between the Muslim Brotherhood and factions within Port Sudan forces widening, particularly as they realize their future is at risk and that Port Sudan forces may abandon them at any moment.

This situation, he warned, could lead to major coups in the coming period, stressing the likelihood of multiple coups aimed at seizing control of the levers of power inside Port Sudan. He noted that figures like Ahmed Haroun, head of the National Congress and former interior minister wanted by the International Criminal Court, and Ali Ahmed Karti, former foreign minister and emir of the Islamic movement, alongside other former regime elements, will not surrender easily but appear poised to lead a coup.

Hasab al-Nabi added that international initiatives, particularly the Quartet initiative, affirm that the Islamic movement must be excluded from Sudan's future. He claimed the movement is therefore bolstering its position through military arms within the security and intelligence apparatuses, led by General Intelligence Service Director First Lieutenant General Ahmed Ibrahim Mufaddal and the Military Intelligence Service. He asserted that all these bodies follow orders from the Islamic movement, calling on the international community, as part of its counter-terrorism strategy in Africa and the Arab world, to form a coalition led by the United States with participation from European nations, especially France.

Concluding his remarks, Hasab al-Nabi stressed that as Sudan enters its fourth year of war, it cannot be allowed to become a state resembling Somalia, and that a return of the Brotherhood to power or their victory over the Rapid Support Forces is now impossible.

Organic Relationship and War Agenda

Political analyst and writer Mohamed al-Mukhtar Mohamed described the relationship between the Brotherhood and Port Sudan forces as organic, resulting from the empowerment of Islamist elements within the military for over three decades. This, he said, includes the formation of parallel ideological brigades that control strategic weapons and drones and have received advanced military training from Iran's Revolutionary Guard.

Speaking to Erem News, al-Mukhtar Mohamed argued that the Brotherhood has transformed the forces into a mere military wing of the Islamic movement. He characterized the current war as the Brotherhood's war, with its agenda and goals being to liquidate the revolution, undermine the democratic transition, and return to power under the guise of Port Sudan forces.

The analyst noted that the war has spiraled beyond the Brotherhood's calculations, evolving from a swift, targeted campaign into a comprehensive civil war. This, he explained, is why they have consistently sabotaged international efforts to halt the war through negotiation, as doing so would remove them from the political equation and open the door to justice and accountability for the organization's leaders.

Al-Mukhtar Mohamed pointed out that the Port Sudan authority camp brings together military components with contradictory natures and objectives regarding the war. As the conflict enters its fourth year, these contradictions are becoming starkly apparent, and an explosion is expected in the coming period, igniting eastern Sudan—a powder keg that could detonate at any moment. He concluded that the issue of restructuring or reforming the military institution has been overtaken by events, noting that while this was possible before the war through the framework agreement that approved integration and reform, the war has produced a different reality and different proposals centered on founding a new army representing all of Sudan's regions and staying clear of politics and economics.