Khartoum’s new government has been trying to put an end to its international isolation. But the struggle to deliver on democracy has been hampered by the legacy of Omar al-Bashir’s decades long dictatorship.
In a series of policy reversals, Sudan’s transitional government recently agreed to submit ousted dictator Omar al-Bashir and three of his aides to the International Criminal Court (ICC), pay compensation to the families of victims of attacks on US interests and began to normalize ties with Israel.
Sudan was prompted, at least in part, by the fact that it continues to be listed by the US as a “state sponsor of terrorism,” a designation it gained under the former Islamist regime for its links with militants, including al-Qaeda, and one it hopes Washington will revoke.
But some sections of Sudanese society have pushed back against Khartoum’s actions. Meanwhile, the ambiguity and slow pace of change, both inside the country and in how it is treated internationally, threaten to undermine the country’s transition to democracy.
