For many Sudanese, Hemedti and his firm are symbols of the country’s repressive past and economic inequalities. Reuters investigates how Sudan’s militia leader hit out against the government of his long-time ally whilst growing rich from gold sales
KHARTOUM - Late last year, as President Omar Hassan al-Bashir’s hold on power weakened, one of Sudan’s most feared militia leaders lashed out against the government of his long-time ally and benefactor.
After years of loyally supporting Bashir, Hemedti took part in the military coup that toppled the leader in April and is now a senior figure in the transitional government that is preparing the ground for elections in three years’ time. Under the constitution, members of the transitional government aren’t allowed to engage in private business activity.
In the past, Hemedti has spoken openly about owning gold interests, most recently in an interview with the BBC in August. “I’m not the first man to have gold mines. It’s true, we have gold mines, and there’s nothing preventing us from working in gold,” he said then. In Darfur, Hemedti earned a reputation as a ruthless commander and a loyal servant to Bashir. The president called him “Hemayti,” meaning “my protector.” After Hemedti seized the goldmines of Darfur’s Jebel Amer mountain region, Bashir allowed him to hold onto the prize.
These practices have sometimes brought Algunade into conflict with local people. In October, people in the town of Talodi, South Kordofan, set fire to the Algunade plant, accusing the firm of plundering their gold and polluting their soil. “Cyanide is more serious because it seeps into the earth, and can be washed by rain, and it kills so many animals and seeps into drinking water and affects vegetation in the area,” said Anwar al-Haj the chair of Sudan Democracy First Group, a non-governmental organization which advocates for democracy. It published a report in 2018 that asserted a link between the use of hazardous chemicals in mining and increased miscarriages, birth defects and deaths.
A senior government official, however, told Reuters, “there were no official records showing that Algunade gave money” to the state. This official said Hemedti used proceeds from gold exports “to buy weapons for Bashir and himself.” He estimated that Hemedti pumped millions of dollars into buying weapons and vehicles for the RSF that roams the streets with rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns mounted on jeeps.
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