Historians of World War II, particularly non-Africanists, may be intrigued by the way in which Sudan became involved in the war and the role it played in the East and North African campaigns. This was a British colony that was attacked by the Italians who occupied parts of its territories. Situated between Egypt and Libya in the north and Italian-occupied Ethiopia in the east, Sudan's involvement in World War II was inevitable. The country became a major theater of military operations and a pivotal supply center for the Allied Forces in North Africa and the Middle East. Not surprisingly, Sudan became a prime target of Italian forces in Ethiopia whose main goal was to cut off this vital supply line. In addition to launching several air strikes on major Sudanese towns, including the capital city of Khartoum and the railway town of Atbara, the Italians occupied key border towns such as Kassala and Gedarif. Sudan also received a large influx of Ethiopian refugees after the Italian occupation and provided a base for training and organizing Ethiopian resistance. Sudanese troops played a critical role in the liberation of Ethiopia and the North African military campaign.

The few studies that have dealt with the Sudanese experience in World War II were written mainly by British and Sudanese war veterans and have, therefore, focused mainly on military aspects of the story. This chapter explores one of the most neglected dimensions of the narrative, namely the engagement of the Sudanese public with the war. Its main goal is to examine the way in which various segments of Sudanese society responded to the war and the events associated with it. Examining the history of the war through this lens will provide a more nuanced understanding of the impact of the war at the grassroots level and its powerful, transformative role in social change. The Sudanese experience illuminates numerous aspects of Africa's involvement in the war. On one level, the Sudanese story sheds significant light on the local and regional dynamics of the war.