2 Sudan generals are at war with each other

The death toll from the crisis in Sudan climbed over 450, a World Health Organization official said Tuesday, citing the war-torn nation's health ministry, as a tense 72-hour ceasefire declared late Monday evening appeared to hold. The fragile ceasefire quieted more than a week of intense fighting between two well-armed factions led by rival commanders.    

Here's what's happening in the east African nation, and why:

Who is fighting in Sudan?

The clashes in Sudan are between the Sudanese Armed Forces, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group, led by Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.

Until recently, the leaders of the two forces were allies. They worked together in 2019 to overthrow Sudan's brutal dictator Omar al-Bashir, who ruled over the country for three decades, sweeping to power as thousands of people took to the streets in a popular uprising against al-Bashir.

 After that coup, a power-sharing government was formed, made up of civilian and military groups. The plan was for it to run Sudan for a few years and oversee a transition to a completely civilian-run government.

Why did the fighting in Sudan start?

In 2021, al-Burhan, who had become chief of the power-sharing council, dissolved it, declaring he would instead hold elections in 2023.   

The current fighting broke out between the army and the RSF as a result of negotiations breaking down over integrating the two forces ahead of the intended restoration of civilian rule. There was disagreement over which general would be subordinate to the other, and how quickly the RSF would be incorporated into the Sudanese military.

Heavy fighting broke out across the country on April 8, with Sudan's capital city of Khartoum and neighboring Obdurman being turned into battlefields.