Sudan Nashra: Military, armed movements repel major RSF assault on Fasher | UN Security Council renews sanctions on Sudan, Darfur arms embargo

Following a series of significant political moves at last week’s Forum on China-Africa Cooperation’s 2024 summit, military operations have intensified across several key Sudanese states: Khartoum and North Kordofan in central Sudan, West Kordofan in the south, North Darfur’s Fasher to the west, and Sennar in the southeast.

In tandem with the military developments, the United Nations’s independent fact-finding mission for Sudan released its first report on September 6. The UN Human Rights Council issued a statement with the report’s recommendations. 

The mission recommended the deployment of impartial forces to “safeguard civilians” and the extension of the arms embargo in Darfur to the entire country. This came ahead of the UN Security Council’s Wednesday session, which concluded with renewing the arms embargo in Darfur only. 

The mission also called for expanding the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to cover all of Sudan.

The mission’s recommendations, while attributing most human rights violations to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), were rejected by the Sudanese government, dismissing them as political and opposing any form of foreign intervention.

On the ground, the RSF shelled Sennar city on Sunday, resulting in 40 deaths and dozens of injuries. The military retaliated and targeted RSF positions around Sennar and Jabal Moya with heavy artillery and airstrikes.

On Thursday, the RSF launched a major offensive on Fasher, the largest in months, attacking from three directions. The military, its allied armed movements and popular resistance forces thwarted the attack in hours-long clashes within the city, which saw several RSF leaders killed. 

In Sudan’s tri-city capital of Khartoum, the military targeted RSF positions in the east and north. In response, the RSF shelled large residential areas in the Karari locality, northern Omdurman, resulting in civilian casualties.

***

UN Security Council extends arms embargo on Darfur for another year

On Wednesday, the UN Security Council renewed sanctions on Sudan, extending the arms embargo on Darfur, along with travel bans and asset freezes for designated individuals and entities, until September 2025.

The sanctions were first imposed in 2005 during the violent conflict in Darfur. In its latest session, the council unanimously adopted the resolution to extend the measures.

Sudan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Al-Harith Idriss, stated during the Security Council session that both France and the United Kingdom had pushed for extending the arms embargo to cover the entire country. However, these efforts were blocked by Russia and China ahead of the session, Idriss said, which resulted in the resolution’s extension in its usual format.

Sudanese Foreign Minister Hussein Awad told Mada Masr that the United States had cooperated on the Security Council’s draft resolution, as did Russia, China, Algeria, Ghana and Mozambique.

Idriss also warned that the failure to rebalance military power in Darfur in favor of the armed forces could negatively impact the government's efforts to protect civilians, particularly with the RSF's ongoing siege of Fasher and continued involvement of foreign states in violating the arms embargo.

He added that the sanctions primarily target the Sudanese Armed Forces by restricting access to weapons, which has contributed to the worsening security situation in Darfur. The international community’s insistence on maintaining the embargo, Idriss argued, weakens the Sudanese Armed Forces and disrupts the military power balance, leaving the region vulnerable to armed foreign groups.

Idriss reiterated Sudan's accusations against the United Arab Emirates for arming the RSF. "The UAE is heavily involved with the RSF and bears significant responsibility," Idriss stated, calling for a review of arms exports to the paramilitary group.

On September 6, the UN Human Rights Council's fact-finding mission in Geneva issued a report recommending expanding the arms embargo and the ICC’s jurisdiction to cover all of Sudan. It also called for deploying peacekeeping forces to protect civilians amid the fighting.

The mission was established in October 2023, with a mandate “to investigate and establish the facts, circumstances and root causes of all alleged human rights violations and abuses and violations of international humanitarian law, including those committed against refugees, and related crimes in the context of the ongoing armed conflict that began on April 15, 2023, between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, as well as other warring parties.”

On December 18, 2023, Human Rights Council President Vaclav Balek announced the appointment of Mohamed Chande Othman from Tanzania, Joy Ezeilo from Nigeria, and Mona Rishmawi from Jordan/Switzerland as independent members of the international fact-finding mission for Sudan.

In the HCR’s statement, mission head Mohamed Chande Othman stressed the urgent need to deploy an independent and impartial force to protect civilians without delay, citing “the failure of the warring parties to spare civilians.”

“The protection of the civilian population is paramount,” Othman said, calling on all parties to comply with their obligations under international law and immediately and unconditionally cease all attacks on civilians.

Meanwhile, Yasser al-Atta, assistant commander-in-chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces and member of the Transitional Sovereignty Council, stated on Tuesday, during an address to military forces in Shendi in northern Khartoum, that the UN should focus on preventing RSF-backing countries from supplying them with weapons, ammunition and provisions, rather than recommending the deployment of forces to protect civilians.

Speaking to Mada Masr via his office, Atta said that the UN resolution is “pointless,” saying that for a year and a half, the RSF has been smuggling weapons into the country. The decision overlooks the deaths of over 15,000 Darfuri citizens from the Masalit people, Atta added, calling for a general reassessment of the UN and Security Council’s decisions.

During his inspection visit to the military’s Third Division in Shendi on Tuesday, Atta asserted that the military is currently at its best, noting the introduction of advanced weaponry that he said would significantly shift the battlefield and soon destroy the RSF. He also said that the military would soon launch coordinated operations across all fronts to “liberate every inch of Sudanese territory.”

While the Civil Front for Democracy welcomed the recommendations of the fact-finding mission, Wathig al-Berir, the secretary general of the National Umma Party, which is a member of the front, warned against deploying international forces if one of the warring parties opposes their presence. In such a scenario, these forces could become a third party in the conflict, escalating the violence, Berir warned.

In his Facebook post commenting on the mission’s report, Berir also cautioned that expanding the ICC’s jurisdiction would create political complications, potentially leading the war’s commanders to cling to the conflict and place the fate of the entire country at the mercy of their own. He further criticized the ICC for its failure, after nearly two decades, to arrest those accused of crimes in Darfur, including ousted President Omar al-Bashir.

Instead, Berir proposed creating a hybrid judicial mechanism designed to balance achieving justice, preventing impunity and restoring stability.

Meanwhile, politician Mohamed Farouk Suleiman told Mada Masr that deploying international forces to protect civilians is essential, given the state’s failure to enforce the rule of law. Such measures are necessary to address violations amid the alarming breakdown of Sudan’s legal system, Suleiman said.

Suleiman called on Sudanese authorities to engage positively with the fact-finding mission’s report by reinstating the rule of law, addressing the dire situation facing Sudanese citizens and alleviating their suffering by assuming governance responsibilities and cooperating with the international community.

***

Military operations intensify in five states

Military operations intensified across five key states that hold strategic and agricultural importance: Khartoum, Sennar, West and North Kordofan, and North Darfur. The Sudanese military is working to secure control over these areas or key parts of them, a source from the military’s General Staff told Mada Masr.

A senior military source told Mada Masr that the military is focusing on targeting logistical weapons depots and bases where the RSF are attempting to regroup. 

The military’s tactics vary by region, a source from the Omdurman military control and command unit told Mada Masr, with differences not only in military strategy but also in the type of equipment, soldier training and the plans devised by the leadership and war rooms across different zones.

Khartoum State

In Khartoum State, fighting is concentrated in western Omdurman, northeastern Bahri and southern Khartoum.

The Omdurman military source said that troops are advancing on the Omdurman axis, aiming to seize control of western Omdurman, including Ombada and Fatehab. The plan is to connect western and southern Omdurman before pushing toward southern Khartoum via the Jabal Awliya dam, which the military’s air force bombed on September 10.

Intense battles are also taking place in southern Khartoum, particularly in the Shagara military zone, where heavy clashes broke out this week. Field commanders of the military and General Intelligence Service, with ranks of colonel and brigadier general, were killed in the RSF’s shelling and attacks, a military source told Mada Masr.

Meanwhile, in northern Bahri, the RSF continues its attempts to capture the Hattab military camp, held by the Sudanese Armed Forces since April 2023. The camp serves as a barrier, blocking the road connecting the eastern bank of the Nile to the Gaili area. The military remains deployed along this line, dealing heavy losses to the RSF and cutting off any military supplies moving to or from the Gaili oil refinery.

Sennar State

In Sennar State, the military is working to block the RSF’s advance toward Sennar city. Intense fighting is taking place around Jabal Moya and west of the Sennar sugar plant, where forces from the General Intelligence Service’s Operations Authority and the military are engaged in fierce battles along the road connecting the Sennar and Gadarif states to allow transporting logistical supplies and food.

RSF troops have positioned themselves 40 kilometers northwest of Sennar, employing long-range artillery and rocket launchers with a range of up to 45 kilometers. Some of these rockets struck the Sennar market on Sunday, killing 40 civilians, a medical source at the Sennar Teaching Hospital told Mada Masr.

A source in the military leadership told Mada Masr that the RSF is targeting the city’s buildings and infrastructure to facilitate their operations and disrupt the military and the Operations Authority's movements. 

Kordofan 

In West Kordofan State, a military reserve unit, backed by the air force, entered Khawi city on September 10. The military’s strikes scattered RSF troops, driving them out of the city. The local Hamar tribe also mobilized fighters to support the military’s field strategies.

Khawi, known for its gum arabic and livestock, is a vital agricultural hub and plays a crucial role in food security in both West and North Kordofan. It is also the second most economically important city in Kordofan, after Obeid.

Strategically, Khawi serves as a key juncture for food distribution routes and a gateway to Obeid, the most important city under military control in Kordofan and western Sudan.

In North Kordofan, a military source at the control and command room of the Fifth Infantry Division (camel cavalry) in Obeid told Mada Masr that, on September 8, the RSF attempted to attack Obeid from two directions — east and southeast, but the military repelled the assault and chased the RSF to the state’s borders.

Several military sources told Mada Masr that the RSF has been trying to shift the military balance by controlling the border area between North and West Kordofan after failing to capture key strategic cities, including Obeid, Nuhud and Babanusa. The RSF also retreated from several fronts, including Um Rawaba, east of Obeid.

North Darfur: Fasher’s most intense battle in months

In North Darfur, the battle for Fasher has now entered its fifth month, with the RSF heavily targeting the city using smuggled drones.

On Sunday, the RSF launched an attack on the northern and northeastern parts of the city, deploying over 40 drones, along with infantry forces. The Sudanese Air Force responded later on the same day, targeting different RSF locations. 

A local source on the Sudan-Chad border told Mada Masr that these drones had been brought into the country about a month and a half ago. 

The source added that RSF Deputy Commander Abdel Rahim Dagalo is seeking to minimize the number of soldiers in direct combat to spread them across multiple fronts. Dagalo has also been engaging local tribal leaders in the state in an effort to replenish his ranks, the source said.

On Thursday, Fasher witnessed its most intense battles in months, with fighting lasting hours, after the RSF concentrated the bulk of their forces in a major assault on the city, the military’s last stronghold in Darfur.

The military announced on Friday that its troops, along with the armed movements’ joint force and mobilized locals, had repelled what they described as a suicide attack by the RSF. The military reported the destruction of dozens of combat vehicles, the capture of others and the deaths of dozens of RSF fighters, including many mercenary leaders.

The joint force also reported on the Fasher assault, stating that the RSF attacked from the southern and eastern axes at 11 am. They added that they successfully defended the city, backed by popular self-defense forces and youths from the popular resistance groups.

According to the joint force’s statement, the clashes continued until 4 pm, inflicting heavy casualties on the RSF, which were driven back from the city’s outskirts. More than 80 mercenaries were killed across all axes, and dozens more wounded. Over 20 military vehicles were destroyed, and 10 others captured intact during the clashes, the statement noted, adding that this marks the 133rd RSF assault on Fasher since May 10.

A field source from the Sixth Infantry Division in Fasher told Mada Masr that the RSF attacked the city from three directions, with fighting concentrated in the neighborhoods of Inqaz, Salam and Wehda. The source added that Abdel Rahim Dagalo personally oversaw the operation.

A source from the city’s control and command room told Mada Masr that the RSF lost most of its attacking forces after the Sudanese Air Force bombed the paramilitary’s positions. The clashes, they said, took place within a small area, with only a few meters separating the military — backed by the joint force and popular resistance groups — from the RSF.

The source noted that the military had benefited from logistical preparations made over two weeks, including airdrop supplies and positioning forces in advantageous locations. While the RSF relied on drones and heavy firepower, their tactics failed due to the defensive forces' strategic countermeasures, according to the source.

The source added that the RSF’s defeat was largely due to the military cutting their supply lines and the air force targeting RSF depots around the city. However, the source cautioned that the RSF might attempt another attack on Fasher in the coming week.

A field source from the joint force on the southeastern front confirmed to Mada Masr that five RSF commanders leading Thursday’s attack were killed, including Abdel Rahman Garn Shatta, a key commander who had been fighting in Khartoum and Wad Madani. Shatta had arrived in Fasher in May with 40 vehicles carrying weapons and soldiers and took charge of the artillery shelling following the death of Ali Yacoub, the RSF commander in central Darfur, during mid-June battles in Fasher. 

Also killed in Thursday’s battle were Colonel Fadl Madio, known as Gefl; Colonel Sadig Balil, who oversaw military supplies; Colonel Abul Gassem Ali Moussa, tasked with intelligence in Fasher; and Major Anwar Salem, the operations commander. Colonel Sadig Shorba, a key figure in both North and South Darfur, was wounded.