Gedaref, town, southeastern Sudan, situated about 120 miles (200 km) southwest of Kassala town. Located at an elevation of 1,975 feet (608 metres), 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 northeast of Gedaref. Light industries include cotton ginning and spinning mills and soap factories. Gedaref is linked by road and railway with Kassala. The population, mainly Arab or Nubian Sudanese, includes the indigenous Beja. Pop. (2008) 269,395.