Sudan’s army has claimed control over Souq Libya, a major market in Omdurman, expanding its recent gains against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the war-torn country.
This Saturday announcement follows the army’s reported capture of most parts of the capital days earlier, potentially marking a decisive shift in the two-year conflict that has created the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.
Military officials stated that their forces had seized weapons and equipment that had been abandoned by retreating RSF fighters at Souq Libya, one of Sudan’s largest commercial centers. The army already controlled much of Omdurman, which houses two significant military bases, and appears determined to secure the entire capital region comprising Khartoum, Omdurman, and Bahri – cities divided by branches of the Nile River. The RSF has not responded to reports of the army’s Omdurman advance, where paramilitary forces still maintain some territory.
The army views recapturing Khartoum, largely under RSF control throughout most of the war, as a potential turning point that could extend to other contested areas.
However, the conflict remains far from resolved, with both sides controlling substantial territory while engaged in ongoing battles. Fighting continues across the vast Darfur region in western Sudan, the central and southern Kordofan region, and Gezira state, a crucial agricultural area south of Khartoum.
Neither side has delivered a decisive blow, and prospects for a political settlement appear distant while both factions maintain regional support.
Sudan’s army has accused the United Arab Emirates of supporting the RSF, allegations deemed credible by UN experts and US lawmakers. On Friday, the International Court of Justice announced it would hear Sudan’s case seeking emergency measures against the UAE for allegedly violating the Genocide Convention by directly supporting the RSF and implicating it in genocidal acts against Darfur’s Masalit people.
The UAE has consistently denied these accusations, dismissing the ICJ case as “nothing more than a cynical publicity stunt.”
In January, the United States accused the RSF of committing genocide in Darfur.
The conflict erupted during a power struggle between the army and RSF amid a planned transition to civilian rule. It has displaced over 12 million Sudanese and left approximately half of the country’s 50 million people facing acute hunger.
Total casualties remain difficult to determine, but one study estimated 61,000 deaths in Khartoum state alone during the first 14 months of fighting.
In related developments, Al Jazeera Arabic reports that the army evacuated hundreds of freed civilian and military prisoners formerly held by RSF in detention centers south of Khartoum to White Nile State. Army commander Major General Mohamed Saleh Abu Halima claimed the RSF detained approximately 4,700 prisoners in deplorable conditions, with many suffering from malnutrition and inadequate healthcare, resulting in several deaths.
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