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In April last year, this programme looked at events in Sudan,

where two rival-armed groups seemed to be in the early stages of a civil war

that the Sudanese people didn't want and seemed powerless to stop.

Things were bleak then. Now it seems they're desperate.

Millions are displaced or refugees, thousands are dead, and the prospect of famine is real.

So what exactly has happened in the last year? How bad might things get?

And what's the international community doing to try and resolve the situation?

Step inside the briefing room and together we'll find out.

First, a reminder of how this current conflict started and a briefing on how it's developed.

The briefing room's Ben Carter spoke to James Cotnell, who presents Newsday on the BBC World Service

and was formerly our correspondent in Sudan.

Firstly, James, just remind us where Sudan is, how big it is and who its neighbours are.

Sudan is one of the biggest is and who its neighbours are.

Sudan is one of the biggest countries in Africa.

It used to be the biggest, actually, until South Sudan seceded in 2011.

It sort of bridges the Arab world, North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa.

It's seen as a gateway to different parts of the continent. It's got Egypt and Libya to the north, Chad to the west, South Sudan to the south, Ethiopia to the east, some of its major

neighbours. It's a very strategic position in the continent. It's been a place that has seen

conflict for many years, but has also been

seen at other times as an agricultural breadbasket for North Africa or even for the Arab world.

And before we talk about this current conflict, Sudan isn't a stranger to civil wars, is it?

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