QADARIF, AL-

also spelled El-gedaref, town, east-central Sudan. It is situated about 120 miles (200 km) southwest of Kassala town. Located at an elevation of 1,975 feet (608 m), it is a commercial centre for the cotton, cereals, sesame seeds, and fodder produced in the surrounding area. The Gash Irrigation Project is located to the northwest of al-Qadarif. Light industries include cotton ginning and spinning mills and soap factories. Al-Qadarif is linked by road and railway with Kassala. The population, mainly Arab or Nubian Sudanese, includes the indigenous Beja. Pop. (1973) 66,465.