View source for Janjaweed

{{Short description|Arab militia of western Sudan and eastern Chad}}
{{Update|date=November 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox militant organization
| name             = Janjaweed<br />{{Nobold|{{lang|ar|جنجويد}}}}
| leader           = Multiple leaders, including [[Musa Hilal]], [[Ali Kushayb]] and [[Hemedti]]<br>[[Abd–Al-Rahman]]<ref>https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/icc-prosecutors-seek-life-sentence-janjaweed-leader-convicted-127586787</ref>
| dates            = 1987&ndash;present<ref>{{Cite web |date=2 May 2023 |title=On the run from Sudan's Arab militias - again |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-65456965 |access-date=25 March 2024 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref name="Sudan's Janjaweed Militia">{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/indepth_coverage/africa/darfur/militia.html|title=Sudan's Janjaweed Militia|publisher=[[PBS]]|access-date=9 June 2019|archive-date=5 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105222322/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/indepth_coverage/africa/darfur/militia.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| area             = {{ubl|{{flag|Sudan}}|{{flag|Chad}}|{{flag|Yemen}}|{{flag|Libya}}}}
| ideology         = [[Tribalism]]<br />[[Sudanese Arabs|Sudanese Arab]] supremacy<br/>[[Anti-Black racism]]<ref>{{cite web|title= Sudan paramilitary group boasts of detaining Islamists|url= https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/19/sudan-paramilitary-group-rsf-boasts-of-detaining-islamists|website=The Guardian|date=19 June 2023|last1=Mohammed Salih|first1=Zeinab|last2=Burke|first2=Jason|access-date=2 November 2025}}</ref>
| opponents        = [[File:Insignia of the Sudanese Armed Forces.svg|23px]] [[Sudanese Armed Forces]] (since 15 April 2023)<br />{{flagdeco|Yemen}} [[Supreme Political Council]]
* {{flag|Houthis}}
{{flagdeco|Libya}} [[Government of National Accord]]<br />{{flagicon image|Flag of SLM (al-Nur).svg}} [[Sudan Liberation Movement/Army]]
| partof           = [[File:Insignia of the Sudanese Armed Forces.svg|23px]] [[Sudanese Armed Forces]]<ref name="sudanesearmed" /> (''de jure'', [[Sudanese civil war (2023–present)|until 2023]])<br>[[File:Emblem of the Rapid Support Forces.png|23px]] [[Rapid Support Forces]] (majority, since 2013<ref name="AJE_who_RSF_Hemeti">{{cite news | title= Who are Sudan's RSF and their commander Hemeti?  | date=6 June 2019 | publisher= [[Al Jazeera]] |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/06/sudan-rsf-commander-hemeti-190605223433929.html |accessdate=6 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190607012042/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/06/sudan-rsf-commander-hemeti-190605223433929.html |archive-date=7 June 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>)
| status           = Active
| size             = Unknown (less than 25,000 est.)
| battles          = {{tree list}}
*[[War in Darfur]]
**[[Darfur genocide (2003–2005)|Darfur genocide]]
*[[Second Libyan Civil War]]
*[[Yemeni civil war (2014–present)|Yemeni Civil War]]
**[[Saudi Arabian–led intervention in Yemen]]
*[[Sudanese civil war (2023–present)]]
** [[Battle of Geneina]]
** [[Darfur genocide (2023–present)]]
** [[Masalit genocide]]
** [[Ardamata massacre]]
** [[El Fasher massacre]]
{{tree list/end}}
| successor        = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Rapid Support Forces (Sudan).png}} [[Rapid Support Forces]]<ref>{{cite web |last1=Etefa |first1=Tsega |title=Explainer: tracing the history of Sudan's Janjaweed militia |url=https://theconversation.com/explainer-tracing-the-history-of-sudans-janjaweed-militia-118926 |website=theconversation.com |date=18 June 2019 |publisher=The Conversation Media Group Ltd |access-date=22 September 2023}}</ref> (de facto)
| predecessor      = [[Islamic Legion]]<br />[[Tajammu al-Arabi]]<br>[[Muraheleen]]
}}

The '''Janjaweed''' ({{langx|ar|جنجويد|Janjawīd}}) are a [[Sudanese Arabs|Sudanese Arab]] [[nomad]] [[militia]] group operating in the [[Sahel|Sahel region]],<ref>Abusharaf, 74, 76;{{Cite web |title=Janjaweed |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Janjaweed |access-date=10 September 2022 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230427191400/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Janjaweed |archive-date=27 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> specifically in [[Sudan]], particularly in [[Darfur]] and eastern [[Chad]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.christiantoday.com/article/un.warns.chad.violence.could.replicate.rwanda.genocide/9584.htm |title=UN Warns Chad Violence Could Replicate Rwanda Genocide |website=Christian Today |access-date=26 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419094530/https://www.christiantoday.com/article/un.warns.chad.violence.could.replicate.rwanda.genocide/9584.htm |archive-date=19 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> They have also been speculated to be active in [[Yemen]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Sudan unrest: What are the Rapid Support Forces? |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/4/16/sudan-unrest-what-is-the-rapid-support-forces |publisher=Al Jazeera |date=16 April 2023 |access-date=21 April 2023 |archive-date=21 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421075214/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/4/16/sudan-unrest-what-is-the-rapid-support-forces |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.refworld.org/docid/5a0d6be54.html|title=Sudan's Controversial Rapid Support Forces Bolster Saudi Efforts in Yemen|author=United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees|website=Refworld|language=en|access-date=25 June 2019|archive-date=31 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190531082125/https://www.refworld.org/docid/5a0d6be54.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="0:">{{Cite news |last=Kirkpatrick |first=David D. |date=28 December 2018 |title=On the Front Line of the Saudi War in Yemen: Child Soldiers From Darfur |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/28/world/africa/saudi-sudan-yemen-child-fighters.html |url-access=subscription |work=The New York Times |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230418110747/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/28/world/africa/saudi-sudan-yemen-child-fighters.html |archive-date=18 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> According to the [[United Nations]] definition, Janjaweed membership consists of Arab nomad tribes from the [[Sahel]], the core of whom are [[Abbala Arabs]], traditionally employed in [[pastoralism|camel herding]], with significant recruitment from the [[Baggara]].

Janjaweed [[nomads]] were initially at odds with Darfur's sedentary population due to competition over grazing grounds and farmland, a conflict exacerbated by [[drought]]. The Janjaweed were a major player in the [[Darfur conflict]] between 2003 and 2020, in opposition to the [[Sudan Liberation Movement/Army]] and the [[Justice and Equality Movement]] rebels.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.asil.org/insights/insigh142.htm |title=The U.N. Responds to the Crisis in Darfur: Security Council Resolution 1556 |website=American Society of International Law |date=August 2004 |first=Mikael |last=Nabati |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070313223151/https://www.asil.org/insights/insigh142.htm |archive-date=13 March 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="aljazeera2020">{{cite web |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/08/sudan-signs-peace-deal-rebel-groups-darfur-200831091517458.html |title=Sudan signs peace deal with rebel groups from Darfur |publisher=Al Jazeera |date=31 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200924123508/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/8/31/sudan-signs-peace-deal-with-rebel-groups-from-darfur |archive-date=24 September 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2013, the [[Rapid Support Forces]] grew out of the Janjaweed.<ref name="AJE_who_RSF_Hemeti"/>

== Etymology ==
The origin of the word ''Janjaweed'' is unclear. It may derive from the Arabic words ''[[jinn]]'' ({{langx|ar|جِنّ|lit=[[:wiktionary:جن#Etymology 1|hidden]], i.e. [[Genius (mythology)|genie]], [[:wiktionary:جن#Etymology 2|demon]] or [[:wiktionary:جن#Etymology 3|insane]]}}) and ''ʾajāwīd'' ({{langx|ar|أَجاويد|lit=horses, horsemen}}), and thus has been translated into English by some sources as "devils on horseback".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://worldwithoutgenocide.org/genocides-and-conflicts/darfur-genocide |title=Darfur Genocide |website=World Without Genocide |access-date=24 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230306021824/http://worldwithoutgenocide.org/genocides-and-conflicts/darfur-genocide |archive-date=6 March 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> Other sources suggest it may derive from the Persian word ''jangjavi'' ({{langx|fa|جنگجوی|lit=warriors}}),<ref>{{Cite magazine |url=https://harpers.org/archive/2008/11/the-activist/7/ |title=The Activist|last= McDonell |first=Nick |date=11 November 2008 |magazine=Harper's Magazine |issn=0017-789X |access-date=24 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160404194104/https://harpers.org/archive/2008/11/the-activist/7/ |archive-date=4 April 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> or a [[portmanteau]] of three words: {{lang|ar|جَن}} (''jan'') from English "gun"; ''jinn''; and ''ʾajāwīd.''<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2004/701/re11.htm |title=Arabs and Africans |date=17 July 2007 |access-date=24 March 2016 |work=Al-Ahram |last=Murad |first=Mahmoud |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070717084935/http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2004/701/re11.htm |archive-date=17 July 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The word "Janjaweed" was used by [[François Tombalbaye]], the Christian President of [[Chad]], to marginalize his Muslim political opponents.<ref>Abusharaf, 74.</ref>

==History==
{{Darfur conflict}}
{{More citations needed section|date=July 2023}}

In [[Darfur]], a western state in Sudan, Libyan leader [[Muammar Gaddafi]] supported the creation of the [[Tajammu al-Arabi]] (Arab Gathering) militia<!-- when? -->, which was described by [[Gérard Prunier]] as "a militantly racist and pan-Arabist organization which stressed the 'Arab' character of the province".<ref name="prunier">{{Cite book |last=Prunier |first=Gérard |title=Darfur: The Ambiguous Genocide |date=2011 |publisher=Cornell University Press |isbn=9780801461941 |ol=17215144M |url=https://archive.org/details/darfurambiguousg0000prun}}</ref>{{rp|p=45}} The Arab Gathering shared members and a source of support with the [[Islamic Legion]], and the distinction between the two is often ambiguous.{{citation needed|date=December 2012}}

The nearly continuous cross-border raids contributed to a separate ethnic conflict within Darfur that killed about 9,000 people between 1985 and 1988.<ref name="prunier"/>{{rp|pp=61–65}} The Janjaweed leadership has some background in Gaddafi's mercenary forces.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=de Waal |first=Alex |title=Counter-Insurgency on the Cheap |journal=[[London Review of Books]] |volume=26 |issue=15 |date=5 August 2004 |url=http://www.lrb.co.uk/v26/n15/waal01_.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://jamestown.org/program/terrorism-and-violence-in-the-sudan-the-islamist-manipulation-of-darfur/ |title=Terrorism and Violence in the Sudan: The Islamist Manipulation of Darfur |access-date=19 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180703153018/https://jamestown.org/program/terrorism-and-violence-in-the-sudan-the-islamist-manipulation-of-darfur/ |newspaper=Jamestown |archive-date=3 July 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The Janjaweed first appeared in 1988 after [[Chad]]ian president [[Hissène Habré]], backed by [[France]] and the [[United States]], defeated the [[Armed forces of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya|Libyan army]]. Gaddafi's Chadian protégé, [[Acheikh Ibn-Oumar]], retreated with his partisan forces to Darfur, where they were hosted by [[Sheikh Musa Hilal]], the newly elevated chief of the [[Rizeigat tribe|Rizeigat Arab tribes]] of north Darfur.{{citation needed|date=December 2012}} Hilal's tribesmen had earlier smuggled Libyan weapons to Ibn-Oumar's forces.{{citation needed|date=December 2012}} A French-Chadian incursion destroyed Ibn-Oumar's camp, but his weapons remained with his [[Mahamid]] hosts.{{citation needed|date=December 2012}}

Throughout the 1990s, the Janjaweed were Arab partisans who pursued a local agenda of controlling land, and were tolerated by the Sudan Government. The majority of Darfur's Arabs, the [[Baggara Arabs|Baggara]], became involved in the war over grazing territory.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jok |first=Jok Madut |title=War and Slavery in Sudan (The Ethnography of Political Violence) |date=2001 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |isbn=9780812217629 |ol=8004494M |url=https://archive.org/details/warslaveryinsuda0000jokj}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=July 2023}} In 1999–2000, faced with threats of insurgency in Western and Northern Darfur, [[Khartoum]]'s security armed the Janjaweed forces.{{citation needed|date=December 2012}}

As the insurgency escalated in February 2003, spearheaded by the [[Sudan Liberation Movement/Army]] and the [[Justice and Equality Movement]], the Sudanese government responded by using the Janjaweed as its main counter-insurgency force. Janjaweed forces were ordered to attack and recover the rebel-held areas of Darfur, conducting a campaign against rebels in Darfur. In 2004, the [[U.S. State Department]] and others named leading Janjaweed commanders, including [[Musa Hilal-Sneed]], as genocide suspects. By early 2006, many Janjaweed had been absorbed into the [[Sudan Armed Forces]] including the [[Popular Defense Forces]] and [[Border Guards]]. Meanwhile, the Janjaweed expanded to include some Arab tribes in eastern Darfur who were not historically associated with the original Janjaweed. A political base was also reestablished in Chad as part of the [[United Front for Democratic Change]] (FUC) coalition.<ref name="sudanesearmed">{{cite web |last1=Dahir |first1=Abdinoor Hasan |title=Soldiers of Fortune: The Evolving Role of Sudanese Militias in Libya |url=https://researchcentre.trtworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Soldiers-of-FortuneSudan.pdf |website=/researchcentre.trtworld.com |publisher=TRT WORLD research centre |access-date=22 September 2023 |quote=In 2006, the Janjaweed militia was absorbed into the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Border Guards. Khartoum appointed Musa Hilal, the commander of the militia, as the head of the Border Guards.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Suleiman |first1=Mahmoud A. |title=Sudanese have become prey of mercenaries and Janjawid militias |url=https://sudantribune.com/article64404/ |work=Sudan Tribune |date=17 September 2018 |access-date=22 September 2023 |quote=The Janjaweed established their presence on the Sudanese political scene very quickly. They are associated with the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), fighting alongside them in the Sudanese states of the Blue Nile and South Kordofan, as well as in the Darfur region.}}</ref>

By October 2007, only the United States government had declared the Janjaweed killings in Darfur to be [[genocide]], since they had killed an estimated 200,000–400,000 civilians over the previous three years.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/july-dec04/sudan_genocide.html |title=Sudan Genocide Declaration Stirs World |date=15 September 2004 |publisher=PBS |access-date=9 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105222325/http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/july-dec04/sudan_genocide.html |archive-date=5 November 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A8364-2004Sep9.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |first1=Glenn |last1=Kessler |first2=Colum |last2=Lynch |title=U.S. Calls Killings In Sudan Genocide |date=10 September 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060717204634/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A8364-2004Sep9.html |archive-date=17 July 2006 |url-status=live}}</ref> The [[UN Security Council]] called for the Janjaweed to be disarmed,<ref>{{cite web |last1=di Sant’Agata |first1=Terzi |title=Letter dated 7 November 2008 from the Chairman of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1591 (2005) addressed to the President of the Security Council |url=https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/Sudan%20S%202008%20647.pdf |publisher=UN Security Council |access-date=29 November 2025}}</ref> a call separately echoed by Secretary General [[Ban Ki-Moon]] in the same year.<ref>{{cite news |title=Darfur security so bad UN-African Union mission cannot be effective – Ban {{!}} UN News |url=https://news.un.org/en/story/2008/10/278842 |work=news.un.org |publisher=United Nations |date=21 October 2008 |language=en}}</ref> On 14 July 2008, the prosecutor of the [[International Criminal Court investigation in Darfur#Omar al-Bashir|International Criminal Court filed genocide charges against Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir]], accusing him of masterminding attempts to wipe out African tribes in Darfur with a campaign of murder, rape and deportation.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Corder |first=Mike |agency=Associated Press |date=14 July 2008 |title=Sudan president charged with genocide in Darfur |url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080714/ap_on_re_af/war_crimes_sudan |publisher=Yahoo! News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080718160508/https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080714/ap_on_re_af/war_crimes_sudan |archive-date=18 July 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 2013, the [[Rapid Support Forces]] (RSF) were formed from the Janjaweed to fight against rebel groups in Darfur, [[South Kordofan]], and [[Blue Nile (state)|Blue Nile]].<ref name="AJE_who_RSF_Hemeti"/>

<gallery>
Image:Darfur report - Page 4 Image 2.jpg|Janjaweed in marketplaces and within walking distance of refugee camps.
Image:Darfur report - Page 3 Image 1.jpg|Armed Janjaweed walk through the marketplace in [[Geneina]]
</gallery>

=== Civil war ===
{{main|Sudanese civil war (2023–present)}}

In 2023, international diplomats insisted that the RSF merge into the [[Sudanese Army]] as part of the [[Sudanese transition to democracy]].<ref name="clashes-abc-news">{{Cite news |last=El-Bawab |first=Nadine |date=15 April 2023 |title=Clashes erupt in Sudan between army, paramilitary group over government transition |url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/clashes-erupt-sudan-army-paramilitary-group-government-transition/story?id=98607846 |work=ABC News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230416231444/https://abcnews.go.com/International/clashes-erupt-sudan-army-paramilitary-group-government-transition/story?id=98607846 |archive-date=16 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref> By April 2023, power struggles developed between Sudan's ''[[de facto]]'' national leader, army commander [[Abdel Fattah al-Burhan]], and the leader of the RSF, [[Hemedti]]. On 15 April 2023, clashes between RSF and army forces erupted across the country.<ref name="clashes-abc-news"/><ref name="fighting-france24">{{Cite news |date=16 April 2023 |title=Fighting continues in Sudan despite humanitarian pause |url=https://www.france24.com/en/africa/20230416-death-toll-mounts-in-sudan-as-army-paramilitary-fight-for-power |work=France24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230420141429/https://www.france24.com/en/africa/20230416-death-toll-mounts-in-sudan-as-army-paramilitary-fight-for-power |archive-date=20 April 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref>

By the second day of the conflict, 78 people had been reported killed. Among the dead were three [[World Food Programme]] (WFP) workers, triggering the organization to suspend its work in Sudan, where it had been a principal force in alleviating hunger. United Nations Secretary-General [[António Guterres]] demanded immediate justice for the killings and called for an end to the conflict.<ref name="clashes-abc-news"/><ref name="fighting-france24"/>{{Update inline|date=July 2023}}

Diplomats from the [[African Union]] and [[Saudi Arabia]] mediated a three-hour humanitarian [[ceasefire]] to permit the evacuation of the injured. Despite this, the battles continued, as both sides claimed to have seized control of key sites in and around the capital city.<ref name="clashes-abc-news"/><ref name="fighting-france24"/>{{Update inline|date=July 2023}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{commons category-inline}}
<!-- Chronological order by date of publication please -->
* [https://archive.today/20121220210735/http://hrw.org/english/docs/2004/07/19/darfur9096.htm "Darfur Documents Confirm Government Policy of Militia Support"], [[Human Rights Watch]] 20 July 2004
* [http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/02/11/news/sudan.php "Painful legacy of Darfur's horrors: Children born of rape"] by Lydia Polgreen, ''[[International Herald Tribune]]'', 12 February 2005
* [https://www.slate.com/id/2104210/ "Who Are the Janjaweed? A guide to the Sudanese militiamen"] by Brendan I. Koerner, [[Slate (magazine)|''Slate'']], 19 July 2005
* {{cite web |url=http://www.justiceafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/07/DeWaal_WhoAretheDarfurians.pdf |title= Who are the Darfurians? Arab and African Identities, Violence and External Engagement |url-status= dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070328023854/http://www.justiceafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/07/DeWaal_WhoAretheDarfurians.pdf |archive-date= 28 March 2007 }}&nbsp;{{small|(313&nbsp;[[Kibibyte|KiB]])}} by [[Alex de Waal]], SSRC and GEI, Harvard, undated

{{DEFAULTSORT:Janjaweed}}
[[Category:War in Darfur]]
[[Category:Chadian Civil War (2005–2010)]]
[[Category:Central African Republic Bush War]]
[[Category:Paramilitary organisations based in Sudan]]
[[Category:Politics of Sudan]]
[[Category:Pro-government militia in Sudan]]
[[Category:Rebel groups in Chad]]
[[Category:Arab supremacy]]