Sudan’s RSF Claims Capture of Key City in Southeast

The Sudanese army acknowledges the RSF’s claim but insists that fighting continues in Singa, the capital of Sennar state.

For over a year, paramilitary forces have been clashing with Sudan’s army. Recently, these forces announced they have taken control of a significant state capital in the southeast of the country.

On Saturday, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) declared on X that they had “liberated the 17th Infantry Division from Singa [the capital of Sennar state].”

Reporting from Khartoum, Al Jazeera’s Hiba Morgan noted that the RSF is steadily gaining control over more territories in Sudan, particularly in the eastern and western regions of the south.

“They already control a large part of the Darfur region, except for el-Fasher, which remains under the army and its allies,” she explained.

Morgan added that the Sudanese army does not contest the RSF’s claim of taking over the 17th Infantry Division. “However, they assert that their forces are still in the city and continue to fight,” she said. “Civilians have reported clashes, and many started leaving the city on Saturday, with more people fleeing on Sunday morning.”

Millions Displaced

Since April 2023, Sudan has been engulfed in conflict between forces loyal to army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF, led by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. This war has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths, millions of displacements, and one of the worst humanitarian crises globally.

The RSF’s recent success brings them closer to Port Sudan on the Red Sea, where the army, government, and United Nations agencies are currently based.

The RSF now controls most of Khartoum, Gezira state in central Sudan, the vast western region of Darfur, and much of Kordofan in the south.

Sennar state, which connects central Sudan to the army-controlled southeast, is already home to over a million displaced Sudanese. Social media posts show thousands fleeing in vehicles and on foot, with witnesses telling AFP that “thousands of people have taken refuge” on the east bank of the Blue Nile river, east of Singa.

The RSF is also besieging and attempting to capture el-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, according to the agency.

On Thursday, a global hunger monitor reported that nearly 26 million people in Sudan are facing severe food insecurity.