Podcast / American Prestige / Dec 9, 2025

Sudan’s Endless War in Darfur and Beyond

On this episode of American Prestige: Mat Nashed on the state of Sudan’s ongoing civil war.

The Nation Podcasts
The Nation Podcasts

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.

Sudan’s Endless War in Darfur and Beyond w/ Mat Nashed | American Prestige
byThe Nation Magazine

Derek and journalist Mat Nashed assess the state of Sudan’s ongoing civil war, particularly the fall of Al-Fasher and the Rapid Support Forces’ consolidation of control across much of Darfur. They discuss the throughline from the 2003 genocide to today; the wider humanitarian catastrophe; the shifting battlefield in Kordofan; the growing role of drones; the RSF’s political gambits; the international dimension of the war, including the UAE’s backing of the RSF and the Sudanese army’s search for external patrons; and they examine why accountability remains elusive as Sudan’s rival powers continue a war that hurts civilians above all else.

Follow Mat on Twitter and Instagram

Read Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s WSJ opinion piece.

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Demonstrators, holding banners and placards, gather to hold a solidarity rally for Sudan on November 22, 2025, in Berlin, Germany.

(Halil Sagirkaya / Anadolu via Getty Images)

Derek and journalist Mat Nashed assess the state of Sudan’s ongoing civil war, particularly the fall of Al-Fasher and the Rapid Support Forces’ consolidation of control across much of Darfur. They discuss the through line from the 2003 genocide to today; the wider humanitarian catastrophe; the shifting battlefield in Kordofan; the growing role of drones; the RSF’s political gambits; the international dimension of the war, including the UAE’s backing of the RSF and the Sudanese army’s search for external patrons; and they examine why accountability remains elusive as Sudan’s rival powers continue a war that hurts civilians above all else.

Follow Mat on Twitter and Instagram

Read Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s WSJ opinion piece.

Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe.

The Nation Podcasts
The Nation Podcasts

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.

Iran Ceasefire Amid Blockade Standoff, Japan Arms Exports Expand, CIA Operatives Die in Mexico | American Prestige
byThe Nation Magazine

Danny and Derek will livestream from Route 3 as they take to the World Cup on foot. This week’s news: in Iran, Trump extends the ceasefire after talks fail (1:02), Iran reimposes its Strait of Hormuz blockade (6:05), the Islamic Republic’s leadership rejects unilateral concessions (9:11), and Persian Gulf mines and oil spills threaten commerce (13:13); the UAE seeks a currency swap after the Iran war’s economic shocks (16:28); Israel violates the Lebanon ceasefire amid extension talks (18:11) while the IDF punishes soldiers over crucifix desecration (21:00); Gaza’s reconstruction costs cause problems, plus governance delays (24:13); the U.S. offers to send Afghan refugees to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (26:33); Japan lifts its lethal arms export ban (28:59); the Sudanese army retakes Moja from the RSF (30:22); the TPLF reasserts control over the Tigray government (32:55); Ukraine reopens the Druzhba pipeline for an EU loan (34:51); CIA deaths expose the United States’ role in Mexico drug raids (37:55); and boat strike survivors allege mistreatment in U.S. custody (40:59).

Be sure to subscribe to our newest miniseries, Marx Prestige.

And check out our series on Christian Zionism with Daniel Hummel

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Subscribe to The Nation to Support all of our podcasts

Your support makes stories like this possible

From illegal war on Iran to an inhumane fuel blockade of Cuba, from AI weapons to crypto corruption, this is a time of staggering chaos, cruelty, and violence. 

Unlike other publications that parrot the views of authoritarians, billionaires, and corporations, The Nation publishes stories that hold the powerful to account and center the communities too often denied a voice in the national media—stories like the one you’ve just read.

Each day, our journalism cuts through lies and distortions, contextualizes the developments reshaping politics around the globe, and advances progressive ideas that oxygenate our movements and instigate change in the halls of power. 

This independent journalism is only possible with the support of our readers. If you want to see more urgent coverage like this, please donate to The Nation today.

Derek Davison

Derek Davison is a writer and analyst specializing in international affairs and US foreign policy. He is the publisher of the Foreign Exchanges newsletter, cohost of the American Prestige podcast, and former editor of LobeLog.

Daniel Bessner

Daniel Bessner is an historian of US foreign relations, and cohost of American Prestige, a podcast on international affairs.

More from The Nation

Demonstrators gather outside the Iraqi embassy in Tehran to thank Iraq for what they consider its support of Iran and the “Axis of Resistance” during the war with the US and Israel.

The End of American Global Power? The End of American Global Power?

Podcast / The Time of Monsters / Dec 9, 2025 Sudan’s Endless War in Darfur and Beyond Anusar Farooqui on the long-term consequences of the Iran War. Jeet Heer Share Copy Li…

Podcast / The Time of Monsters

Elon Musk, chief executive officer of Tesla Inc., during the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, January 22, 2026.

The Problem With “CEO Said a Thing” Journalism—With Karl Bode The Problem With “CEO Said a Thing” Journalism—With Karl Bode

Paris Marx and Karl Bode discuss how tech journalists and corporate interests are irresponsibly raising the profile of tech CEOs, damaging public trust in institutional journalism...

Paris Marx

Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) (R) participates in a discussion during a National Press Club Headliners Newsmaker event on April 14, 2026, in Washington, DC.

Ro Khanna: AI for the People—Plus, Trump’s Downward Spiral Ro Khanna: AI for the People—Plus, Trump’s Downward Spiral

On this episode of Start Making Sense, the member of Congress from Silicon Valley presents an “AI Manifesto,” and Harold Meyerson reports on Trump’s continuing decline.

Jon Wiener

How Unionization Can Solve the Crisis in College Football 

How Unionization Can Solve the Crisis in College Football  How Unionization Can Solve the Crisis in College Football 

Jason Stahl joins Edge of Sports to talk about the campaign to unionize college football.

Dave Zirin

Peter Magyar (C), lead candidate of the Tisza party, speaks to supporters after polling stations closed during Hungarian parliamentary elections on April 12, 2026, in Budapest, Hungary.

How Hungary Fought Its Fascists—With Zack Beauchamp and Jennifer McCoy How Hungary Fought Its Fascists—With Zack Beauchamp and Jennifer McCoy

Podcast / Dec 9, 2025 Sudan’s Endless War in Darfur and Beyond We have, of course, always been experts on Hungary… but just in case we’re missing something, we brought on two a…

Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu visits an Israeli military unit stationed in the occupied territory of southern Lebanon on April 12, 2026.

Palestine and the Iran War Palestine and the Iran War

Yousef Munayyer on the divergence between the US and Israel.

Jeet Heer

x