‘The worst of worst-case scenarios’: Western diplomats blindsided over Sudan crisis

Residents and regional experts say governments and NGOs should have been better prepared for violence

Residents of Khartoum say they have been warning about such a clash for months, with both factions mobilising for a struggle. Picture: AP /Marwan Ali

The message from the senior United Nations officials to their staff was honest — if unapologetic. 

Four days after Sudan was plunged into a welter of chaotic violence as two rival factions battled for control of its capital city, the UN’s special representative to Sudan answered questions online in a virtual “townhall meeting”.