From the fear of fighting to the pressure of the game, Mohamed Al Nour, the goalkeeper of the Sudanese team, left behind the "terror" of war in Sudan with the duty to comfort a wounded people during the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) in Morocco.

When the bloody conflict between the regular army and the paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) breaks out in April 2023, against a backdrop of a power struggle, the goalkeeper is forced to put football on hold.

"We lived through terror," the 25-year-old footballer, who plays for Al Merreikh, one of Sudan's two biggest clubs, confided to AFP with restraint. He stated that his brother was detained for nearly nine months by the FSR.

The war has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced nearly 12 million and, according to the UN, created the world's worst humanitarian crisis, while both sides are accused of serious abuses.

Mohamed Al Nour hopes that his team, which has qualified for the round of 16, will go "as far" as possible in the AFCON to "please the people" of Sudan, who have suffered from the collapse of the health system, the destruction of infrastructure and famine in some parts of the country.

After being beaten by Algeria (3-0) in their opening match, Sudan caused a surprise by defeating Equatorial Guinea (1-0) in Casablanca.

This was Sudan's second victory in 18 matches and six Africa Cup of Nations finals, which the country won in 1970, in a different era.

Having lost to Burkina Faso (2-0) on Wednesday, the Sudanese will face Senegal in the round of 16 on Saturday in Tangier.

- "Pray for peace" -

Since the start of the war, the national championship has been suspended, forcing Mohamed Al Nour's club and its great rival Al-Hilal to go into exile, first in Mauritania and then in Rwanda.

In 2025, however, the two teams played a mini local tournament in order to maintain their eligibility for continental competitions, according to the Sudanese Federation, which announced a restart of the championship in January in the areas deemed safe in the country.

"We tried to use each match to prepare ourselves and create an osmosis within the group to create a collective," explains midfielder Ammar Taifour, who played for Al Merreikh when the war broke out.

At this stage, international efforts to establish a truce in the conflict have been unsuccessful.

After the victory against Equatorial Guinea in Morocco, "it was really great to see the reaction" of the Sudanese, whether they attended the match at the stadium or sent messages from abroad, rejoiced the 28-year-old Sudanese-American player, hoping that the results of the Nile Crocodiles, one of their nicknames, could "take them away from the war" for a moment.

For him, the day of April 15, 2023 will remain etched in his memory: "We were in a camp with Al Merreikh in Khartoum. I remember the surprise, the shock caused by the first shots (...). It was very surprising. Nobody expected it."

"Then, in the following days, the power cuts, the incessant gunfire (...). We didn't know what was happening, it was complete chaos," adds the footballer who now plays for Club Sportif Sfaxien in Tunisia.

More than two years later, the war, marked by executions, looting and rape, continues. Following the capture in October of El-Facher, the army's last stronghold in the vast Darfur province in the west of the country, the FSR have refocused their operations on the neighboring region of Kordofan.

"I just pray for peace and that all those who find themselves in this situation are safe and get through it," sighs Ammar Taifour.