The Final Dose of Misinformation “3-4”
Dr. Al-Nour Hamad
(1)
Keikal The Intelligence Trojan Horse
An old English proverb conveys that, “If you fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.” The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have -unfortunately- made a number of mistakes due to deception, whilst conducting their battle in this war, which was ignited by the Muslim Brotherhood and their Army in an effort to eliminate the RSF. Fortunately for the latter, for the country, and for the prospects of democratic transition, this war failed miserably from the outset to achieve its objective. For those who ignited it were proven wrong in their assessment that they could resolve it rather quickly. Hence, its duration continued to extend far beyond what they imagined, venturing into uncharted waters, to the point where predicting its end is no longer possible. Two and a half years have now passed, and there is still no sign of an end in sight. As it was founded on recklessness and a miscalculation of consequences, a characteristic shared by all Muslim Brotherhood organizations, both in Sudan and elsewhere; for example, take into consideration what Hamas did in Gaza.
Despite the treacherous surprise attack launched by the Brotherhood’s Army and its brigades, the Rapid Support Forces managed to successfully seize control of key areas of the capital, Khartoum, from the outset. Faced with a fierce counterattack, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) failed to accomplish anything but retreat its main forces to their camps, content with the mere desperate act of defense, leaving civilians trapped in one of the most brutal urban warfare campaigns. Perhaps the Sudanese Army’s lacking performance stemmed from the fact that a number of its Commanders were unaware that a war was about to be waged against the RSF. Conversely, it seems that the Islamist brigades affiliated with the organization, embedded within the Sudanese Army, believed they, along with certain factions within SAF -aligned with them, could decisively defeat the RSF in the capital. Their Commanders had indeed claimed that eliminating them would take no more than six hours. Nevertheless, the Sudanese Army’s poor performance and insufficient manpower became apparent. The tanks and armored vehicles that had patrolled the streets of Khartoum at the beginning of the ongoing war had completely disappeared thereafter. Consequently, the Sudanese Army was quick to summon units from its camps in the regions surrounding Khartoum, nonetheless, all the aforementioned units -that rushed to its aid- were defeated and scattered.
Furthermore, the war took the Rapid Support Forces by surprise, which, coupled with it being their first experience in urban warfare, led them to commit grave and unavoidable errors. These cost them dearly in terms of equipment and personnel, and, most significantly, in terms of reputation. The most egregious of these errors was falling into the trap set by General Al-Burhan with his false statement issued from Wad Medani, where he claimed to have mobilized (40,000), and that he would send them to reinforce the Sudanese Army’s positions in Khartoum. The aforementioned statement led the Rapid Support Forces to consider occupying Wad Medani and to assign the task to AbuaglaKeikal, whom they were unaware -at the time- was an agent of the Military Intelligence.
For in reality, Keikal was planted within the Rapid Support Forces’ ranks for three purposes: First, To draw the RSF into occupying Wad Medani in order to weaken their grip on Khartoum, and to draw a significant portion of them out and disperse them across a vast geographical area densely populated with villages and medium-sized towns. This led to their dispersal and weakened their command-and-control structure, as well as complicated their supply and support lines. This was especially true given that the irrigated region of Al-Jazeera is crisscrossed by a vast network of canals and narrow paths between fields, which restricts movement, to a certain level.Furthermore, their presence in the numerous villages and towns of Al-Jazeera burdened them with administrative and security responsibilities, whilst they were already engaged in warfare in a completely new environment. Additionally, itsan environment where the Muslim Brotherhood and its cronies control the administrative institutions. Hence, the aforementioned details took place according to a plan devised by the Military Intelligence and entrusted to its agent, Keikal, for implementation.
The second purpose of Keikal’s infiltration efforts was to implicate the RSF in widespread human rights abuses, with the aim of tarnishing the latter’s reputation as much as possible, destroying the forces’ image, and inciting hatred against them amongst the population of Central Sudan. To successfully accomplish these goals, the Muslim Brotherhood, the Security and Intelligence Services set numerous traps for the RSF. For they mobilized and armed civilians with light weapons, inciting them to attack the RSF positions near several villages. Prompting the RSF to respond with their heavier weapons, resulting in numerous casualties and thus, forcing the RSF to pursue the remnants of the attackers into the villages, leading to further violations and chaos. Indeed, the Military Intelligence filmed such events and circulated them widely as part of the pre-planned campaign to discredit the RSF. Examples of the aforementioned include what took place in the villages of Wad al-Noura, al-La’uta al-Hajjaj, al-Takina, al-Sariha, and the towns of Rufa’aand al-Hilaliya, amongst other places where this insidious and cunning plan was implemented. In addition, groups from the Kasiba and Shafshafagroups flocked to the war zone from various directions with the intent to loot and plunder. The Military Intelligence provided some of these groups with Rapid Support Forces uniforms.
Hegemony Through the Destruction of Societal Security
In regards to the third Keikal’s third purpose, and the primary one for which the war was essentially waged; its represented in the complete destruction of societal security for all citizens. Because, following the failure of all their attempts to thwart the December Revolution, the Muslim Brotherhood and their Army concluded that they had no chance of returning to power unless they completely destroyed any sense of security the citizens possess. It is well known that the best way to crush a people’s revolution is to deprive them of their security and destroy their stable way of life. In consequence, this will inevitably lead them to abandon their revolution under the immense pressure of insecurity, instability, and the lack of opportunities for a decent life, compound with the accumulation of suffering, displacement, and hardship, the people’s aspirations shrink, becoming limited to the mere dream of returning to the previous conditions. Indeed, the previous conditions, with all their injustices, evils, and ugliness, become a dream, the ultimate aspiration.
This tactic succeeded in emptying Khartoum of its inhabitants, a devastating blow to the revolution’s stronghold, its stage, and its source of strength, where the largest segment of its supporters resided. At which juncture, another intelligence agent, Ibrahim Baqqal, was employed in carrying out this massive task across the three cities of the capital. Therefore, it’s crucial to remember that all this widespread destruction was carried out under the principle of “Either we rule over you or kill you.” This infamous saying has come to describe the methods of oppressive regimes in dealing with their rebellious populations. For Lt. Gen. Al-Kabbashi adopted this saying in a new form when he declared, “Either Sudan is governed by our standards, or Sudan ceases to exist.” Throughout the following period, Lt. Gen. Al-Kabbashi’s message was disseminated during Ramadan Iftars -and a week before the outbreak of the ongoing war- by Anas Omar, Al-Hajj Adam, Mohammad Tahir Aila, Mohammad Al-Jazouli, and others. (Feel free to watch the videos online).
After Khartoum was largely emptied of its residents, a significant number of families from the capital headed to the region of Al-Jazeera, as it was the area best equipped to receive the displaced due to its numerous towns and villages. Furthermore, it possessed a reasonable level of basic services, making it a preferred destination for families from the capital. In addition, many of Al-Jazeera residents who had moved to the capital decades earlier, returned to their villages due to the war. In Wad Medani, the number of displaced persons increased dramatically during this period, almost doubling the city’s total population. However, the Brotherhood’s sinister scheme to destabilize the population shifted its focus in its second phase from Khartoum to Wad Medani and Al-Jazeera state as a whole, which was already overcrowded with displaced persons. The attack waged by Keikal on Wad Medani was the means to implement this second chapter of instability and displacement. The stricken region of Al-Jazeera, which had become a refuge for those fleeing the war, suffered the same fate as the capital. Once again, those who had fled to Al-Jazeera were displaced, and this time a segment of the state’s own residents were displaced as well to Sennar, Singa, El-Qadarif, Kassala, Port Sudan, and other cities that remained relatively safe.
