History of Sudan
The modern Republic of Sudan was formed in 1956 and inherited its boundaries from Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, established in 1899. For times predating 1899, usage of the term "Sudan" for the territory of the Republic of Sudan was somewhat anachronistic, and may have referred to the more diffuse concept of the Sudan.
Protests in Sudan (2011–13)
President Omar al-Bashir has been the Sudanese president since he led a bloodless coup in 1989. Bashir began instituting Sharia and abolished political parties in 1990. He appointed himself president in 1993, returned Sudan to civilian rule, and won a presidential election in 1996 as the only candidate. In 2008, the International Criminal Court called for his arrest for alleged genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur. Sudan rejected the indictment, saying the decision was an affront to Sudan's sovereignty. The political system of Sudan is widely considered by both the domestic and the international community as an authoritarian system, due to the control of the National Congress Party of the judiciary, executive and legislative branches of government.