Sudanese Army Repels Rapid Support Forces and SPLM-N Attacks in Blue Nile’s El-Keli and Saly

The Sudanese army announced it repelled an attack launched by the Rapid Support Forces coalition and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement on the El-Keli area in southern Blue Nile on Sunday, and said the 4th Infantry Division forces also defeated the Rapid Support Forces along the Saly axis.

“The fall of the city follows accusations by Sudanese officials that Ethiopia had facilitated the cross-border assault”

Agenzia Nova

Radio Dabanga quoted Blue Nile government spokesperson Saif al-Nasr Minallah saying the armed forces repelled the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement attacks on the Saly area and that the security situation was stable.

Al-Jazeera Net

In a separate statement carried by التلفزيون العربي, the army declared it had taken control of the Al-Baraka area on the outskirts of the city of Karmak in Blue Nile State after clashes with the Rapid Support Forces, describing the operation as part of ongoing military operations to purge every square meter tainted by the rebellion.

The same statement said the Fourth Infantry Division and supporting forces achieved a new field advance in Al-Baraka, managed to drive away the RSF militia, purify the entire area, and inflict heavy losses in lives and equipment on it and its allies from the SPLM-North.

The Al-Baraka advance was reported alongside other recent army control claims in Blue Nile, including that on Monday the Sudanese army announced it had taken control of the Kern Kern and Dokan areas and inflicted significant losses in lives and equipment on the RSF.

While the army described tightening control and new advances in Blue Nile, Radio Dabanga reported that the International Organization for Migration disclosed the displacement of 1,645 individuals (329 families) from the town of Kisân due to escalating insecurity.

Saif al-Nasr Minallah told Radio Dabanga that about 73,000 people had been displaced from conflict areas to Damazin since the start of the military operations, and he said most of them were children, the elderly, and pregnant women.

Al-Jazeera Net

Minallah warned that the region was under heavy pressure due to a continued influx of returnees from neighboring countries and previous displacement waves that exceeded the capacity of the camps and available services.

He stressed urgent humanitarian needs including food, medicine, drinking water, shelter, and sanitation services, and said the scale of the crisis exceeds local capabilities.

In parallel, Agenzia Nova described the RSF and the SPLM-N led by Abdul Aziz al-Hilu taking control of the strategic town of Kurmuk on the border with Ethiopia, and said the fall followed accusations by Sudanese officials that Ethiopia had facilitated the cross-border offensive.

Agenzia Nova reported that the Rapid Support Forces and the SPLM-N led by Abdul Aziz al-Hilu captured the entire town of Kurmuk, including the Al Baraka and Al Kaili neighborhoods, after violent clashes against the Sudanese army and allied armed movements.

“The Sudanese army announced on Sunday that it had taken control of the Al-Baraka area on the outskirts of the city of Al-Karmak in Blue Nile State, in the southeast of the country, bordering Ethiopia, after clashes with the Rapid Support Forces”

Al-Jazeera Net

The same article said the commander of the army’s 16th Infantry Brigade, Mohamed Mansour, and the Blue Nile regional army confirmed the news and indicated that its forces had withdrawn due to a ‘special situation’ after initially repelling several waves of attacks and inflicting heavy losses on the decentralized coalition.

Agenzia Nova also said the assault on Kurmuk was described by government sources cited by the Sudan Tribune as being ‘sponsored’ by Ethiopia, with combat vehicles transported from Assosa on Ethiopian soil to Khor al-Dahab on the Ethiopian side of the border to launch the offensive.

In its account of the broader conflict, Al-Jazeera Net said the RSF has not issued any comment on what the army said, and it noted that in the past two weeks the RSF announced control of new areas including Kern Kern and Dokan in Blue Nile state.

Al-Jazeera Net further linked the fighting to mass displacement and famine conditions, stating that since April 2023 the RSF has been clashing with the Sudanese army and that this has led to famine considered among the worst in the world, in addition to the deaths of tens of thousands of Sudanese and the displacement of about 13 million people.