TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY GUILLAUME LAVALL

TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY GUILLAUME LAVALLEE Sudanese Sufi Sheikh al-Khalifa al-Tayeb al-Gid, leader of the Qadiriya Sufi school, sits in his room in the village of Umm Dawban, 40 kms north of Khartoum, on April 13, 2010. In the first Sudanese presidential election since 1986, President and candidate Omar al-Beshir praised Sufis in many of his campaign speeches, a recipe that borne fruit. Sufis known as mystics and formerly opposed to Islamists, now say that there is no difference between the two. Sufism is generally understood by scholars and Sufis to be the inner, mystical, or psycho-spiritual dimension of Islam. Today, however, many Muslims and non-Muslims believe that Sufism is outside the sphere of Islam. AFP PHOTO/PATRICK BAZ (Photo credit should read PATRICK BAZ/AFP via Getty Images)