Israel is increasingly getting worried about the strengthening relationship between its Abraham Accords partner, Sudan, and its long-time adversary, Iran.
This development comes as Sudan grapples with a devastating civil war that erupted in 2023, according to a report by Israeli public broadcaster Kan on Sunday.
The report suggests that Sudanese military leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, locked in a fierce battle against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), initially sought military assistance from Israel.
Sources close to al-Burhan revealed that he had hoped for weapons from Jerusalem to aid his forces. However, when the anticipated Israeli support did not materialize, Sudan turned to Tehran.
Sudan and Iran officially renewed diplomatic ties in July 2024, after a six-year hiatus following their severance in 2016. Since the restoration of relations, Kan reported that al-Burhan’s army has allegedly received military aid from Iran as it struggles against the RSF.
A source close to the Sudanese leader told Kan that while seeking assistance from Tehran was not al-Burhan’s initial preference, “Sudan is forced to cooperate with any party interested in supplying it with weapons.”
The source further stated that there was a “great opportunity for anyone who wants to help Sudan, publicly and secretly,” and that Sudan had expected to receive such support from Israel, which could have fostered “a real breakthrough in relations.”
However, the lack of assistance from Jerusalem reportedly left Sudan feeling abandoned, leading it to turn to Iran, which “seized the opportunity after Sudan’s friends abandoned it,” the source claimed. “For the sake of Sudan’s interests, we would even make a deal with the devil,” the source added, highlighting the desperation of the situation.
Reports from December of last year, including one by Bloomberg, indicated that Iran was already supplying drones to al-Burhan’s forces. Notably, Iran has also been accused of providing drones to Russia for its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. In a recent development, at the end of March, al-Burhan’s forces managed to recapture the capital, Khartoum.
Sudan’s growing cooperation with Iran, a nation openly hostile to Israel, has reportedly sparked concern in Jerusalem, although Kan did not cite specific sources for this apprehension.
The normalization of ties between Sudan and Israel was a significant diplomatic achievement brokered by the United States under then-President Donald Trump in October 2020. Sudan was the third Arab state to join the Abraham Accords that year, following the UAE and Bahrain. It is widely believed that Sudan, facing severe economic hardship, agreed to the normalization primarily to be removed from the US list of state sponsors of terror and to unlock crucial financial aid. The economic stability of Sudan was considered vital for the success of the agreement.
The normalization deal was also expected to include aid and investment from Israel, particularly in sectors like technology and agriculture, alongside further debt relief for Sudan. At the time, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel would send $5 million worth of wheat to Sudan.
However, the anticipated deepening of ties between the two nations did not significantly materialize before Sudan descended into the current civil war in 2023. The conflict is rooted in a long-standing power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF over control of the military.
The ongoing fighting has triggered a major humanitarian crisis, drawing in various foreign actors who have aligned themselves with different sides in the conflict. These include Chad, Egypt, Iran, Libya, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, further complicating the already volatile situation. The reported growing closeness between Sudan and Iran adds a new layer of complexity to the regional dynamics and raises concerns in Israel about the future of the Abraham Accords.