
Ones and Tooze The War in Sudan
23 snips
Apr 24, 2026 They unpack the scale, human cost and geopolitical stakes of the multi‑year war in Sudan. They explore how artisanal gold, foreign backers and drone warfare shape the conflict. They trace Islamabad’s design as a planned Cold War capital and why Pakistan is now hosting high‑stakes US–Iran talks.
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Sudan Is A Large Underreported Humanitarian Catastrophe
- Sudan is a massive crisis comparable in population to multiple Middle Eastern states combined, with immediate conflict deaths around 100,000 and millions displaced.
- Adam Tooze highlights 53 million population, 4.5 million refugees, and 34 million needing aid, stressing regional strain in East Africa.
Gold Funds Sudan's Modernized War
- Gold has replaced oil as Sudan's key export and funds the war through artisanal mining and opaque smuggling routes to Dubai and Egypt.
- Tooze explains gold's fungibility and price surge enable UAE-backed RSF to buy advanced drones and weaponry.
Sudan Has Shifted From Toyota Wars To Drone Warfare
- The Sudan war has technologically evolved into a drone war supplied via UAE and Chinese sources, shifting it from 1990s 'Toyota wars' to high-tech conflicts.
- Tooze notes RSF and army import artillery and drones, changing scale and lethality.



