Who are Sudans Darfur rebels?
When conflict broke out in Darfur early in 2003, there were just two major rebel groups. Since then, the insurgents have splintered into an array of competing factions, complicating already tense peace negotiations. JEM The Justice and Equality Movement (Jem) was founded by Darfuris drawn mostly from among former supporters of Islamist leader Hassan al-Turabi. He was a partner in President Omar al-Bashir’s 1989 coup which overthrew Sadeq al-Mahdi’s elected government. Jem is led by Khalil Ibrahim, a doctor who was one of the authors of “The Black Book”, which documented the disproportionate power of three northern Arab tribes. Jem is currently the most significant fighting force in Darfur and in May 2008, the group launched an unprecedented attack on the Sudanese capital. Sudan’s government has accused neighbouring Chad of arming Jem. Chadian President Idriss Deby is widely believed to have supported Jem because he is from the same Zaghawa ethnic group as Khalil Ibrahim. But last month
