Sudan Nashra: From General Command, Burhan announces Khartoum liberation offensive, closes door to negotiations with RSF | Military retakes Jaili refinery | Minnawi accuses Haftar of interfering in war

For the first time since he fled the premises in August 2023, Sudan’s Transitional Sovereignty Council Chair and military Commander-in-Chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan returned to the military’s General Command headquarters in Khartoum. Addressing senior officers on Sunday, a day after his forces lifted the war-long siege on the General Command, Burhan declared that the battle for the capital is nearing its conclusion and that there will be no room for negotiations with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). 

After linking up with its forces in the Signal Corps camp on the northern bank of the Blue Nile, the military crossed the river into the General Command’s HQ in central Khartoum on Friday. By Saturday, forces advancing on the Jaili Oil Refinery north of Bahri captured the strategic site. Now, the military has an open supply line stretching nearly 900 kilometers from the coastal city of Port Sudan in the far northeast to the capital, along with access to several other key routes. These gains mark a critical shift in the conflict, moving the battlefronts away from the central region and toward the remote areas thousands of kilometers to the west.

The military’s breakthroughs over the past few days may herald the beginning of the end of the war in the capital. With supply routes secured, the military is positioned to strengthen its hold on the capital, reclaim other strategic sites such as the presidential palace and connect forces in the Mogran area and Shagara military base to the General Command. Forces can now also advance from southern Omdurman via the White Nile and Fatihab bridges, setting the stage for a major battle in Khartoum.

Expanded military operations would follow, targeting RSF strongholds in eastern and southern Khartoum, including Jabal Awliya and the critical Khartoum-Wad Madani road, which links to key RSF concentrations in the capital.

Beyond Khartoum, these advances may pave the way for curtailing the RSF’s presence in the Gezira, White Nile, and North Kordofan states, with the potential to lift the siege on Obeid. From there, military forces could advance westward, breaking through the RSF’s positions in Fasher, Daein, Nyala, and ultimately reaching Central and West Darfur, pushing the conflict to Sudan’s borders with South Sudan and the Central African Republic. The RSF’s exploitation of Sudan’s complex, interconnected geography to sever supply routes and fragment the country has long been a strategic advantage, but the military’s recent gains threaten to upend it.

In North Darfur, where the conflict is tied to the fate of a unified Sudan, the city of Fasher came under a large-scale assault on Friday from five different fronts, according to Darfur Governor Minni Arko Minnawi, who confirmed that the attack had been repelled.

This marks the RSF’s first major ground offensive in several weeks, following its Monday ultimatum that gave the military and the armed movements’ joint force 48 hours to surrender. The offensive coincides with ongoing desert battles in which the joint force, supported by airstrikes, are attempting to disrupt a military supply line for the RSF from Libya.

While failing to secure any gains in Friday’s operation, an RSF drone strike on Saturday targeted the Saudi Hospital, killing over 70 people, according to Minnawi.

Speaking to Mada Masr, Minnawi underscored continued foreign support for the RSF. He said that the paramilitary’s latest reinforcements include mercenaries brought in with assistance from Chad, as well as fighters aligned with Libyan National Army Commander Khalifa Haftar.

Minnawi accused Haftar of providing logistical support directly to RSF deputy commander Abdel Rahim Dagalo and said that the United Arab Emirates has generously funded efforts to take over Fasher and replicate the Libyan model of competing spheres of influence in Sudan.

Meanwhile, in Gezira State in central Sudan, clashes continue between the military, backed by popular resistance forces and the Sudan Shield Forces, and the RSF. The humanitarian conditions in RSF-held areas of northern Gezira remain dire. Al-Mabarr Mahmoud, the secretary-general of the Gezira Conference, told Mada Masr that tensions are rising across villages in northern Gezira, particularly the Hasahisa and Kamlin localities, where the RSF committed severe violations against civilians over the past two weeks.

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Military breaks siege on Signal Corps, General Command

On Thursday evening, the military broke the RSF’s siege on the Signal Corps camp on the northern banks of the Blue Nile in southern Bahri. Forces from northern Bahri and Omdurman reached the camp, which had been under siege since the war’s outbreak, before crossing the Blue Nile bridge later that night to link up with forces in the General Command. 

A field source told Mada Masr that the operation restores logistical supply lines and significantly bolsters military capabilities to consolidate control over Khartoum and Bahri — most of which are now under military control.

The operation to break the siege on the Signal Corps camp started on Monday, a field source told Mada Masr, when the corps’ forces launched a surprise advance northward into RSF strongholds in the Amlak neighborhood. Over the following days, their forces captured several key positions, including Bahri Secondary School and the residence of Adel Dagalo, a brother of the RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo, which was being used as an arms and ammunition depot. The forces also extended advanced defenses toward the Mazad neighborhood's main street — a pivotal area for the battle for Bahri.

Throughout the past week, military airstrikes targeted RSF positions in Bahri, with the heaviest strikes occurring on Thursday.

Another field source told Mada Masr that after its capture of the Shukri intersection on Shaheed Matar Street on January 18, the military advanced into Safiya neighborhoods near the Signal Corps camp. By Wednesday, it had taken control of several tall buildings, including the Hassan Ibrahim Malik student dormitories, seized weapons, ammunition, Kornet missiles, and jammed devices from a building in southern Safiya, the source added.

RSF elements then began retreating, the source said, withdrawing equipment from central Bahri to the Kafouri neighborhood in the east and other locations in the East Nile locality. By Thursday, the siege on the Signal Corps camp was lifted.

This breakthrough follows earlier operations on September 26, when the military, in its first major ground operation in the capital since the outbreak of the war, crossed the Halfaya, White Nile, and Fatihab bridges into Khartoum and Bahri, linking forces from Karari in northern Omdurman with those stationed at the Kadro camp. This secured northern Bahri and eastern Omdurman, while also expanding military presence into the Mogran area west of Khartoum from southern Omdurman.

Since then, the military had been pushing to lift the siege on both the General Command and the Signal Corps camp, with recent operations focusing on reaching the former through the latter.

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Burhan returns to General Command for 1st time since 2023

On Sunday, Burhan visited the General Command headquarters in central Khartoum, marking his first in-person meeting with the chief of staff and other senior officers since his departure from the HQ in August 2023.

A military source told Mada Masr that Burhan was accompanied by a delegation of military and security officials, including Assistant Commander-in-Chief Yasser al-Atta, Intelligence Chief Ibrahim Mufaddal, and Defense Industry System Director Mirghani Idriss. He held a meeting with senior officers, led by Chief of Staff Mohamed Othman al-Hussein, the source said.

The military is gearing up for large-scale ground operations in Khartoum in the coming days, the source noted, adding that several military convoys have already been deployed to the East Nile area east of the capital.

During his address to officers and soldiers at the General Command, Burhan stated that the battle is nearing its end. He affirmed the military’s resolve to defeat the rebellion, declaring, “In the coming days, the cities of Bahri and Omdurman will be safe.”

Burhan also announced plans for a major campaign in the capital to purge it of “rebels, mercenaries, and criminals.” He attributed recent victories across various fronts to the public’s support for the military, stressing that the military is in its strongest and will proceed to eliminate rebellion across Sudan. He vowed to pursue the rebels “wherever they are in Sudan until they submit.”

Later that day, during a separate visit to the Sudanese Intelligence Service HQ in Bahri, Burhan reiterated that there would be no room for negotiations, reconciliation, or the return of the rebels or their allies.

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Military captures Jaili oil refinery following intense battles

In another breakthrough for the Sudanese Armed Forces in the capital, the military announced on Saturday that it had regained full control over the Jaili Oil Refinery in northern Bahri following intense clashes with the RSF.

The operation was part of a coordinated advance from Bahri and Shendi in the River Nile State, during which the military secured critical sites and camps on January 20 and 21. Intense clashes broke out as the forces advanced on the refinery on Wednesday, a military source told Mada Masr.

By Friday, the military declared it had expelled RSF forces from the Jaili refinery, ending a nearly ten-month-long siege. The following morning, military spokesperson Nabil Abdallah issued a statement confirming full control over the site.

On the Shendi axis, in the days leading to the final advance into the refinery, the military captured the Hagar al-Asal area in the River Nile State, making the state completely free of RSF presence, the military source said.

Multiple RSF combat vehicles were destroyed along this axis, the source said, and the military captured the Rotana factory and the Sawaga camp east of the refinery, the Air Defense camp, Shakout camp, and the Firg al-Sereeg area — one of the largest RSF strongholds north of Khartoum.

An RSF reinforcing unit attempting to reach the refinery on Wednesday fell into an ambush near the Hatab camp, the source said, resulting in the destruction of their vehicles and the killing or capture of several personnel.

In preparation for the takeover, the military’s Engineers Corps cleared dozens of mines planted by the RSF around the refinery's perimeter, according to the source.

On the Bahri axis, the military advanced from the Weapons Corps camp in Kadro, clearing areas in Kabashi, Saggay, and Jaili town and extending its reach to the northern gateway of Khartoum State. Other troops pushed forward to Shalal al-Sabluga along the Nile and close to the refinery.

On Thursday, the military stormed and fully secured the Qari Military Industries Complex northeast of the refinery, a field source told Mada Masr.

Loud explosions were heard early Thursday morning, a resident of Omdurman told Mada Masr, followed by plumes of smoke rising from within the Jaili refinery.

Military spokesperson Nabil Abdallah accused the RSF of setting fire to the refinery, adding that their forces resorted to burning the facility after being surrounded by the military on all combat fronts.

Describing the act as a “desperate attempt to destroy the country’s infrastructure,” Abdallah said the RSF had lost hope of fulfilling what he called its "illusions of seizing Sudan's resources and territory."

The RSF, on its part, accused the military of bombing the refinery with barrel bombs and destroying what remained of its facilities. In a statement, the RSF labeled the ongoing airstrikes on the refinery as a "full-fledged war crime."

The Jaili oil refinery, Sudan's largest oil facility, has suffered extensive damage during the war, with several depots and buildings consumed by fire on multiple occasions.

A senior military officer told Mada Masr that the battle for the refinery was part of a broader operation to liberate critical infrastructure and secure northern Bahri. Regaining control of the refinery marks a significant step in resolving the broader conflict across the capital, the officer said, noting that its capture would reopen a crucial supply route stretching from northern Sudan to East Nile areas and Bahri.

Securing control over the Jaili oil refinery allows the military to connect its Nile River State forces with those in Khartoum and secure the Tahaddi Street connecting the two states, positioning the military to take control of the capital, a military source told Mada Masr.

The source also said that, following this consolidation, the military is expected to reposition forces to western Sudan to reclaim North, South, and West Kordofan where RSF forces besiege Obeid, Um Rawaba, and Babanusa. Securing these areas would restore key routes linking Kordofan to Darfur, the source added.

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Renewed clashes in Fasher following expiry of RSF ultimatum

Heavy clashes broke out in Fasher on Wednesday and Thursday after the expiry of a 48-hour ultimatum issued by the RSF for the Sudanese military to surrender or leave the city, an RSF field source told Mada Masr.

According to the source, the RSF has sustained logistical operations along Fasher’s northern axis, deploying three military convoys with over 3,000 fighters over the past few months. These fighters, the source said, had undergone training to prepare for what the source described as the decisive battle for Fasher.

On the other side, a Sudanese military source from the Sixth Infantry Division in Fasher told Mada Masr that intense clashes took place along the northeastern axis of the city between Tuesday and Thursday. The source noted that airstrikes played a decisive role in shifting the tide of the battle in favor of the military.

Darfur Governor Minni Arko Minnawi accused the RSF of mobilizing foreign mercenaries with support from Chad, as well as fighters allied with Libyan National Army commander Khalifa Haftar. Speaking to Mada Masr, Minnawi said that Haftar provided logistical support to RSF deputy commander Abdel Rahim Dagalo. He also accused the UAE of generously financing the RSF in an attempt to topple Fasher and replicate a Libyan scenario in Sudan.

Minnawi noted that RSF threats against the people of Fasher were met with fierce resistance. RSF attacks over the past week targeted Fasher from five simultaneous axes, he said, but were repelled by the military, its joint force, and popular resistance forces, which inflicted heavy losses on the RSF.

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Dozens of casualties in RSF drone strike on Fasher’s hospital

On Saturday, a day after a failed ground attack on Fasher, the RSF carried out a drone strike targeting the Saudi Hospital, killing and injuring dozens.

Darfur Governor Minnawi stated that the attack targeted the hospital’s emergency room, which he said had been the last remaining department not previously hit. He added that all patients in the ward — over 70, primarily women and children — were killed in the strike.

North Darfur’s Health Ministry General Director Ibrahim Khater, speaking to Mada Masr, confirmed the death toll, adding that more than 100 others were injured. He said that relentless RSF assaults on Fasher have led to an average of 30 fatalities on a daily basis.

The RSF’s bombardments have turned Fasher and its outskirts into a “living hell,” Seif Eddin Sago, a community leader at the Abu Shouk displacement camp, told Mada Masr. Sago said that, since the start of January, over 55 people have been killed and more than 80 injured within the camp.

Sago highlighted a dire situation within the camp due to sustained artillery shelling, which occurs from 6 am to 6 pm daily. The lack of transportation has left many of the injured unable to reach hospitals, while the camp's health center grapples with a severe shortage of medicines and medical supplies. As a result, many injured residents are relying on traditional remedies.

Sago emphasized that the displaced community is struggling to afford basic necessities such as food and water. Many residents are forced to shelter in trenches for days during shelling, unable to leave to access markets or seek work.

The worsening security situation has also caused a surge in displacement, Sago added, with many families fleeing with their children in search of safety from the constant attacks.

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Ongoing desert battles in North Darfur

Fighting continues on the desert front in North Darfur, where military operations intensified over Sunday and Monday. Backed by airstrikes, the military and the joint force launched intense attacks on positions around Wadi Howar and its northeastern extension.

A source in the joint force told Mada Masr that the battle began at Bir Margi, a strategically significant location under joint force control that plays a critical role in cutting off RSF supply lines from Libya to Fasher. The RSF attempted to infiltrate from the Libyan border toward the tri-border region connecting Sudan, Libya, and Chad in what the source described as a desperate bid to break the siege on RSF forces in Malit.

This maneuver came after the joint force had already secured full control over the border triangle and Wadi Howar, the source added.

The clashes dealt heavy blows to the RSF, with over 37 vehicles destroyed and more than 65 others seized in excellent condition, fully equipped with modern weaponry. According to the source, the remaining RSF forces scattered across the tri-border region, with some retreating to Libya and others fleeing to Chad.

The RSF also attempted attacks on the joint force’s positions in Deri Shagi and Jabal Maw — areas the joint force secured in late December. After a fierce battle, more than 270 RSF fighters were killed, 24 vehicles destroyed, and 13 captured in excellent condition, loaded with a variety of armaments, the source added.

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RSF violations resurge in northern Gezira

The RSF intensified attacks on northern Gezira, particularly targeting the Hasahisa and Kamlin localities, Al-Mabarr Mahmoud, secretary-general of the Gezira Conference, a civil organization, told Mada Masr.

These assaults follow the military’s capture of Wad Madani, Gezira’s capital, on January 11. 

Three villages in northern Gezira locality were subjected to brutal violence, Mahmoud said, with the RSF committing massacres that left more than 11 people dead. The attacks also involved mutilating corpses and amputating limbs.

Mahmoud added that the violence extended to women and children, with reports of women being disfigured in the villages of Bashagra East, Magarit, and Shirb.

Villages in the Hasahisa locality have also faced repeated violent assaults, leading to large-scale displacement from areas such as Fugara, Um Hamad, Arbagy, Wad al-Fadni, and Kombo Wad al-Fadni, according to Mahmoud.

The RSF’s violations included flogging civilians and looting property, Mahmoud said. A health center in Talbab village was destroyed, and entire communities were forcibly displaced, with dozens of civilians injured by RSF gunfire. Two residents were killed in Wad al-Fadni, three in Wad al-Magdi, and one in Um Hamad, according to Mahmoud.

Several villages in the Kamlin locality, including Jamiaabi, have also been targeted. In Tiba al-Naim village, Mahmoud said, a woman with special needs was beaten to death, and her body was withheld until a ransom was paid.

The RSF also deliberately opened irrigation canals, Mahmoud added, flooding Tiba al-Naim and the nearby Hasaballah village. All residents of Tiba al-Naim fled to the village of Rihana.

RSF forces also confiscated residents' Starlink devices and phones, creating a blackout that hindered the flow of information from the region, Mahmoud said.

Six villages in the Abu Quta area of Hasahisa locality are under imminent threat of invasion by the RSF, leaving residents in catastrophic conditions, Mahmoud warned.