Reigniting Rivalries: Musa Hilal's Quiet Challenge to Hemedti in Darfur

A faltering return for one of the founding figures of the 'Janjaweed' militia in Sudan, Musa Hilal – the man who once rivaled Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) for leadership of the group, which later evolved into the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia.

According to Africa Intelligence, the French publication specializing in African affairs, on November 29, 2024, “Musa Hilal, a long-standing rival of paramilitary leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo in the Darfur region, is maneuvering behind the scenes and waiting for an opportunity to make a comeback as the country's civil war rages.” 

Hilal's Maneuvering

Musa Hilal, 53, is a well-known figure in Darfur, western Sudan. 

He stands accused of committing numerous atrocities during the civil war between 2003 and 2011 and is now attempting to regain some of his former influence in a region ravaged once again by conflict.

Since the outbreak of the current war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces militia, Hilal has sought to position himself as a mediator between the warring factions. 

However, his efforts have largely been in vain, hindered by a lack of resources and dwindling political leverage.

However, in early October 2024, Hilal’s 'Sudanese Revolutionary Awakening Council' reached an agreement with the group led by Darfurian leader Tahir Hajar, aiming to put an end to their years-long rivalry.

Hilal hails from the Rizeigat tribe, who have long provided fighters to the Rapid Support Forces militia under Hemedti, despite the internal divisions they face.

Hemedti, one of Sudan’s most powerful and influential figures, is also a member of the Rizeigat and has solidified his leadership over them in recent years, much to the dismay of Hilal, who harbors a deep animosity towards him.

‘Janjaweed’ Militia Revival

Like the RSF militia, the Revolutionary Awakening Council is considered a faction of the infamous 'Janjaweed' militias that fought on behalf of former president Omar al-Bashir during the Darfur conflict after 2003.

However, the International Criminal Court did not pursue Hilal as it did other warlords implicated in atrocities committed in Darfur during that period. 

Nevertheless, he remains under sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council.

By the end of the Darfur conflict, Hemedti had successfully consolidated his position as leader of the RSF militia, which Bashir had originally established as his personal guard to protect him from any potential military coup.

However, Hemedti exploited this position to eliminate his main rivals, including Hilal, who was imprisoned in 2017. 

This allowed Hemedti to co-opt many of Hilal's former allies and seize control of the gold mines in Jebel Amer.

These mines, previously under the control of the Revolutionary Awakening Council, enabled the RSF militia to generate annual revenues of around $50 million.

When Bashir’s regime fell in 2019, Hilal was still behind bars. 

By the time Hilal was released in 2021, Hemedti had ascended to a senior position, sharing power with Army Chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

The Sudanese General Intelligence Service, closely tied to the military, released Hilal, believing he could pose a challenge to Hemedti. 

With thousands of fighters based in Libya and Chad, Hilal was seen as having the means to weaken Hemedti’s hold over the Rizeigat Arabs, the key support base of the RSF militia.

Wide-scale Arrests

On October 20, 2020, the local Monte Carro newspaper reported that "Rapid Support Forces intelligence arrested Ali Majok al-Moumen, a former minister and the Secretary of Foreign Relations in the Revolutionary Awakening Council led by Sheikh Hilal."

The report added that "the Rapid Support Forces [militia] launched a sweeping campaign of arrests, detaining several mid-ranking officers who are currently under investigation. The arrests are linked to suspicions of their involvement in a plot orchestrated by the Revolutionary Awakening Council to overthrow the current leadership and replace it with one loyal to Hilal."

"Among those arrested was Major al-Hadi Mokhtar Baql, a senior member of the Rapid Support Forces, who was detained after a gunfight in the Mawalih area while en route to Kabkabiya, a town in northern Darfur."

"The high command of the Rapid Support Forces [militia], under Hemedti’s leadership, recently dismissed around 2,600 soldiers from the Mahamid tribe, who are believed to be loyal to the imprisoned tribal leader Musa Hilal," as confirmed by the report.

On September 24, 2020, several Sudanese news outlets reported that the Rapid Support Forces' intelligence service had arrested Taher Doud Mohamed Farah, a member of the Mahamid tribe, and transported him to Hemedti's underground facility in al-Manshiya area of Khartoum.

Doud is no ordinary figure in these regions. He hails from the Mahamid tribe and resides in the Gara' al-Zawiya area in the Sareif Beni Hussein locality, a community that has long been the backbone of the Janjaweed militias. 

They were initially loyal to its founder, Musa Hilal, the arch-rival of Hemedti.

At the time, the Rapid Support Forces militia blamed the unrest and internal divisions, as well as the coup attempts, on elements within the army. 

They accused military leaders of seeking to dismantle the RSF militia through a 'soft' strategy, reintegrating dismissed soldiers into the army's ground units and recruiting other groups to support Hilal, a natural counterpart to Hemedti.

Hilal's Watchful Eye

The rapid and unsettling events have reinforced Hemedti’s belief that, despite Musa Hilal’s previous imprisonment, he continues to haunt him both in his supreme authority and among his heavily armed forces.

This has led to a division of loyalties. While Hemedti may have the upper hand over Hilal, the latter still enjoys the allegiance of a significant fraction of tribes, most notably the Mahamid, who pose the greatest threat to the unity of the RSF militia.

These tribes represent the weakest link in the RSF’s militia otherwise solid structure—an element that could collapse at any moment if the situation deteriorates further. 

This vulnerability has prompted Hemedti and his intelligence apparatus to relentlessly target them, warning of their potential exploitation by the military, which is intent on reclaiming all of Darfur—Hemedti’s fortress and capital.

In February 2024, “Hilal’s son, Habib Musa Hilal, signed a non-aggression pact with the RSF militia on his father’s behalf.”

The deal guaranteed Hilal the right to retain control over his fighters stationed in northern Darfur in exchange for remaining neutral in the RSF’s ongoing conflict with the army.

In return, he received 900 million Sudanese pounds (approximately €1.4 million) from Hemedti.

According to Darfur 24, the sum was compensation for the equipment, weapons, and vehicles seized by Hemedti when Hilal was arrested in 2017.

However, as soon as the funds were secured, Hilal shifted his allegiance. 

Just two months later, he declared his support for the army, albeit for limited financial backing.

The Sudanese army, which controls the city of al Fashir, Darfur’s capital, lacks the resources to effectively support Hilal’s forces. 

Additionally, non-Arab armed groups and their leaders, allies of the army in the region, remain distrustful of Hilal—who, like Hemedti, had oppressed them during the early 2000s.

In his quest to position himself as a potential alternative to Hemedti in the event of his downfall, Hilal has opted to remain, for now, in the role of the watchful observer, waiting for the right moment to strike back with renewed strength.