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Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary launched a broad offensive on Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) positions in Blue Nile state on Sunday.
A Sudanese intelligence source described the attack as “very heavy” and said the army had been expecting it for weeks, having sent reinforcements to the state, which borders Ethiopia and South Sudan, earlier this month.
The RSF has been joined in the offensive by allied fighters from Abdelaziz Adam al-Hilu's Sudan People's Liberation Army-North (SPLA-N). Heavy fighting has been reported near Ad-Damazin, Blue Nile’s capital, toward which the RSF fighters are moving.
According to the Sudan War Monitor, video footage showed that RSF units had advanced north from Ulu in the Baw district of Blue Nile state early on Sunday, reaching a remote SAF garrison at al-Silk, about 16km from Ulu.
While videos posted on pro-RSF channels showed paramilitary fighters at the Sudanese military bases, SAF sources said the attack had been repelled and that the garrison remained in their hands.
Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newslettersSpeculation about where the attack on the Baw district of Blue Nile state originated from has been rife, with sources from the SAF telling affiliated media that it had come from South Sudan.
The source from Sudanese intelligence, which supports the SAF, told Middle East Eye that RSF and allied fighters had come from South Sudan and Ethiopia, where the RSF is suspected of having a base in the Benishangul Gumuz region.
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Read More »MEE could not verify these claims about where the offensive originated from independently, and such a move would implicate South Sudan and Ethiopia, which is aligned with the UAE, the RSF’s patron, directly in the Sudan war.
The UAE continues to deny supporting the RSF, despite mounting evidence, including recent flight tracking, satellite imagery and extensive sourcing.
Sources aligned with the SAF believe the offensive in Blue Nile was partly designed to draw resources away from the Kordofan region, the site of fierce fighting in recent weeks.
On Monday, Sudan War Monitor reported that “after weeks of attempted southward advances from North Kordofan”, the SAF has captured the Habila locality in South Kordofan.
Habila is an agricultural town that lies west of Dilling, which is under siege by the RSF and fighters from SPLA-N. The army now hopes to be able to break this siege.
Drone attacks launched by both sides have killed and injured civilians in South Kordofan, including women and children, in recent weeks. On Saturday, the RSF said it had shot down a Turkish-made Bayraktar drone in al-Farshaya in the state.
The war in Sudan began in April 2023 and has resulted in the deaths of at least tens of thousands of people, with over 14 million forced to leave their homes.