Sudan Nashra: Military pushes west, launching 4th phase in war | RSF mobilizes special forces in West Darfur to counter military’s advance west | Jordan takes lead in Arab League mediation between UAE, Sudan

The military has launched a fourth phase of its war against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), according to two high-ranking military officials who spoke to Mada Masr this week.

Its operations, composed largely of ground combat with aerial strikes on RSF command centers, come as the unprecedented RSF drone strikes on eastern Sudan last week subsided.

The military is now pushing west in an offensive toward the RSF in Darfur via three axes — one from Northern State and two through South and West Kordofan, with notable gains so far.  

In West Kordofan’s Khawi, the military destroyed a large RSF contingent. In South Kordofan, it advanced into key locations, including the Kalogi locality, where the main base of Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu, is now within its reach. 

The RSF, for its part, is preparing counterstrategies to stall this advance. Senior RSF sources told Mada Masr that the paramilitary group is equipping special forces in West Darfur’s Geneina specifically trained to defend RSF-held territory and engage the military’s advancing units. 

Meanwhile, in the capital, Khartoum, the military resumed its push to eliminate the remaining RSF pockets in Omdurman, amassing troops in the city as well as in northern White Nile State, bordering the capital. Several neighborhoods fell to the military this week. 

And at the geopolitical level, against the backdrop of Sudan’s diplomatic break with the United Arab Emirates over its alleged responsibility for last week’s drone attacks, the Arab League tasked Jordan with leading mediation efforts, according to four informed sources.

The Sudanese government expressed readiness to engage in talks under Arab League-led mediation efforts, on the condition that the UAE halt its support for the RSF. But there are doubts around the UAE’s seriousness about ending its interference in Sudan’s internal affairs, according to a source in the Transitional Sovereignty Council (TSC).

On Thursday, Sudan called on China to intervene with Abu Dhabi to stop the flow of Chinese-made drones to the RSF. 

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Military launches 4th phase in war pushing operations into Sudan’s west

Pushing its operations toward the western edges of Sudan, the military has entered the fourth phase of its offensive against the RSF, a senior official at the military’s General Staff told Mada Masr.

The RSF holds its strongest foothold and its central command in the country’s west.

A second senior military source described this new phase as involving strategic infiltration and targeted strikes on RSF command and control centers. The operations are designed to be precise and multi-layered, the source said, declining to disclose the  full scope of the phase’s operations. The phase began with the military reasserting control in North Kordofan and advancing westward.

According to the two officials, and two other high-ranking armed forces sources, military operations have unfolded in three distinct phases until now. 

The first phase, they said, focused on absorbing the RSF’s initial advances across multiple fronts after the war broke out in April 2023,  and encircling their key military positions. 

For nearly a year, this phase saw the military remain entrenched, defending its main positions — particularly in Khartoum — while relying heavily on air power. But by the end of the year, it had lost key strongholds in four Darfuri states, as well as parts of Khartoum and Gezira’s Wad Madani in central Sudan. 

In early 2024, the military began gradually shifting from defense to offense, especially in Khartoum State. In March 2024, it managed to connect its bases in Omdurman — one of the cities that make up the capital — but it continued to lose territory elsewhere, particularly in the Sennar and Blue Nile states in the southeast. 

This led into the second phase, which the sources described as marked by targeted strikes on the RSF’s largest combat groupings across Sudan. In September, the military crossed the capital’s Nile bridges in its largest advance in the state. Within days, it launched operations in Sennar and proceeded to reclaim the entirety of the state and large parts of Blue Nile, closing the year with significant territorial gains. 

Between January and May of this year, the military moved into its operations’ third phase, during which it managed to push the RSF out of central Sudan entirely, except for a few pockets in Omdurman and parts of the White Nile State, bordering the city. This phase, according to the sources, was aimed at regaining territory and reconnecting military camps across Sudan, enabling the military to retake key states including White Nile, Khartoum, Sennar and Gezira.

Now, after breaking the siege on Obeid in North Kordofan in February, the military shifted its main operations to West and South Kordofan. This marks the fourth phase the military officials described, as it moves toward Darfur. 

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Military advances in Kordofan as fighting escalates en route to Darfur

Clashes broke out this week across the three states of Kordofan as the military continues to push westward in a campaign aimed at reaching the Darfur region and breaking the siege on Fasher, the capital of North Darfur.

The battles took place in areas between North and West Kordofan that have witnessed a weeks-long struggle as the military pushes to break the RSF’s defenses in the area. 

On Saturday, the military reclaimed the village of Umm Sumeima, west of North Kordofan’s capital, Obeid, following heavy clashes, a field source told Mada Masr. The village had served as a key RSF position linking North and West Kordofan. 

The military continued its advance on Sunday, recapturing the town of Khawi and the nearby villages of Ayyara and Jabal Haidoub, near Nuhud in West Kordofan, according to the source. 

Launching a counteroffensive, the RSF attempted to retake Khawi on Tuesday, mobilizing over 250 armed vehicles with fighters in the town of Eyal Bakhit to the west, the source said. They breached the military’s defenses and advanced into the town, but the military quickly regained control with a large-scale encirclement maneuver that inflicted heavy losses on the RSF both in personnel and equipment, according to the source.

The nine-hour battle for Khawi resulted in the deaths of over 800 RSF fighters, including foreign mercenaries, the armed movements’ joint force said in a statement issued later that evening. The military-allied force also stated that it had seized 80 vehicles in good condition and destroyed 43 others.

A senior military officer told Mada Masr that the military’s strategy in Khawi was to lure the RSF into a trap, with the aim of depleting its core combat strength ahead of a larger assault on Nuhud — the temporary administrative capital of West Kordofan. The RSF "took the bait," the officer said, adding that their forces suffered a major psychological and material blow that would likely ripple across the wider battles in Kordofan and Darfur.

In addition to its strategic location in West Kordofan, serving as a transit point between cities in Kordofan and western Sudan, Khawi is also a key economic hub for gum arabic and livestock.

On Wednesday, the RSF launched renewed attacks on Khawi, but were repelled by a combination of military units, joint force units and local mobilized fighters, forcing them to retreat once again, according to the military officer. 

Their troops are now stationed at Jabal Haidoub, just a few kilometers from central Nuhud, the officer said, anticipating that the military would continue a battle of attrition before launching any full-scale assault to retake the city.

The RSF seized control of Nuhud on May 1 following the military’s withdrawal to Khawi after brief clashes. The next day, the RSF advanced and captured Khawi, prompting the military to fall back to Obeid in North Kordofan.

Now, the military is once again closing in on Nuhud, a key staging ground in the broader battle for western Sudan. 

A field source told Mada Masr that the RSF has been reinforcing its positions in the city over Tuesday and Wednesday in preparation for a decisive confrontation, mobilizing additional forces from Wad Banda and Foga, as well as retreating units from Khawi.

Meanwhile, fighting also broke out south of Obeid, where the military-allied Sayyad mobile unit recaptured the Kazgil area on Sunday and Hammadi on Tuesday, a local source told Mada Masr. The military also encircled the strategic town of Debeibat in South Kordofan, whose capture would secure the route to Dalang and other parts of West Kordofan, the source said. 

On Thursday, the military captured the village of Um Deheilib in South Kordofan’s Kalogi locality, following clashes with the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu, a military source told Mada Masr.

Um Deheilib, located about 45 kilometers east of Kawda — the SPLM-N (al-Hilu)’s stronghold — holds strategic military and geographic significance. The SPLM-N (al-Hilu) had long maintained a camp there, using the village as a forward defensive position for its main base in Kawda.

According to the source, the battle broke out early in the morning when troops from the military’s 10th Division, alongside the Shaheed al-Masry mobile unit advancing from Abu Jebiha, launched an assault on the village. After heavy clashes, the military took full control of the area and seized weapons and ammunition depots.

The SPLM-N (al-Hilu) has been in conflict with the military in their territories in South Kordofan and the southern Blue Nile State since 2011. Following the ouster of former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in 2019 and in the years leading up to the outbreak of the war in 2023, the military and the rebel group continued to renew a ceasefire agreement on an annual basis. Since the war, however, fighting has resumed between the two.

The military’s push westward toward Darfur is advancing along three primary axes. The first runs from Khawi and Nuhud in West Kordofan to Um Kaddada in eastern North Darfur. The second moves southward from Obeid through Kazgil and Hammadi toward Debeibat, with plans to continue west to Fula and Babanusa in West Kordofan, then to Daein in East Darfur. The third axis begins in Northern State’s Dabba and cuts across the desert directly into Darfur.

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RSF mobilizes special forces in Geneina, West Darfur to counter military’s advance west

Even as the military pushes west toward Darfur, senior RSF sources in the western command, particularly in Geneina — the capital of West Darfur State — told Mada Masr that extensive preparations are underway to deploy special forces in the area.

According to the sources, the RSF is equipping its special units — which have undergone training and are armed with advanced weaponry, including strategic combat drones — in a bid to halt the military’s advance through West and South Kordofan.

A commander in the RSF's Geneina command center told Mada Masr that the RSF is working to deter the military and its allied units’ incursions by destroying any advancing troops before they can gain ground.

The specialized defensive force — distinct from the RSF’s offensive units, which the commander said are designed for rapid strikes rather than holding territory — are specifically tasked with fending off attacks and securing RSF-held areas.

A source in the Sudanese General Intelligence told Mada Masr that the RSF is likely to lose its foothold in the Kordofan region, forcing it to prioritize defensive formations. The military, according to the source, recently destroyed major RSF arms and ammunition depots in Geneina, in what they described as the largest aerial operation in months — a move expected to complicate the RSF’s efforts to assemble and equip new forces.

Eyewitnesses in Geneina told Mada Masr that military aircraft bombed the city’s airport and nearby neighborhoods on Tuesday, killing several RSF military leaders. 

An RSF security source, however, downplayed the impact of the airstrikes, arguing that the military lacks precision-guided weapons. The source told Mada Masr that RSF units have become adept at countering the military’s air operations.

A second RSF source denied that any of its commanders were killed in the strikes.

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Heavy clashes in southern Omdurman as military targets last RSF pockets in the capital

Fighting has resumed in Omdurman, west of Khartoum, since the start of the week as the military ramps up efforts to retake and clear the last remaining southern and southwestern areas of the city still held by the RSF.

A field source told Mada Masr that the military deployed additional troops and military vehicles to southern Omdurman on Saturday. Heavy clashes ensued with RSF units, culminating in the military taking full control of the Real Estate Bank neighborhood.

By Monday, the military pushed deeper into the city, advancing into the premises of the Omdurman Islamic University and the eastern Shagla neighborhood, eventually reaching the Abu Zar al-Kuda School, which the RSF had been using as one of its command centers, according to the source. A stockpile of RSF military equipment was discovered in the area, the source added.

A second field source said that the advance to Shagla and toward Salha comes at the same time as forces were deployed in the Safwa and Dar al-Salam areas on the city’s far southwestern edge to execute a strategy of comprehensive encirclement around the remaining RSF pockets. There is also a possibility, the source said, of surprise assaults and a river crossing from the eastern bank of the White Nile in Khartoum into southern Omdurman.

The second source added that the military’s advance units reached the outskirts of the Gadin area, north of the Real Estate Bank neighborhood, as part of efforts to encircle the Salha neighborhood and the Gamuia area — the final two major RSF positions in the capital, according to the source.

Clashes continued in the same area into Tuesday, the source added, with the military making further gains, destroying several RSF combat vehicles and forcing some of the paramilitary’s fighters to surrender.

The military, backed by the Sudan Shield Forces, is simultaneously pushing toward Omdurman from northern White Nile State, a local source told Mada Masr. On Monday, they clashed with RSF fighters and managed to recapture the village of Shatawi and other sites in the Um Ramta locality.

While RSF positions remain concentrated in the far south and southwest of Omdurman — particularly in Salha, Gamuia, Muweilah and nearby areas — their troops are also heavily present in Alga, Samra, Khayrat and Sheikh al-Siddig on the northern edges of White Nile State, which borders Omdurman.

In northern Omdurman, the RSF launched drone strikes targeting three power stations on Wednesday evening: the Markhiyat substation, the Military College distribution station and the Mahdiya station. Eyewitnesses told Mada Masr that the attacks caused massive fires and a total blackout in the area. 

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Jordan to mediate between Sudan, UAE

The Arab League has tasked Jordan to take the lead in mediating between Sudan and the UAE, as tensions between the two continue to mount, three informed sources told Mada Masr.

The diplomatic movements follow Port Sudan’s decision to sever ties with Abu Dhabi, after the government held the Gulf state responsible for the RSF’s unprecedented drone onslaught on eastern Sudan last week.. 

Jordan’s role in leading the mediation involves drafting a “matrix” that could guide an Arab League-led diplomatic push to find common ground for a potential agreement between Sudan and the UAE, the first of the sources said.

In an effort to chart a roadmap for Sudan’s broader political crisis — particularly in the wake of its diplomatic break with the UAE due to Abu Dhabi’s support of the RSF — the Arab League has been engaged in extensive discussions with the Sudanese government and the TSC via the Foreign Ministry, said a second source, a senior official in the Sudanese government. 

The Arab League has proposed a de-escalation framework, according to a third source, a member of the Foreign Ministry familiar with the talks. The Sudanese government, the source said, has shown willingness to consider solutions, but only if the UAE permanently halts its funding and support for the RSF and refrains from any interference, recognizing the war as a domestic matter.

Meanwhile, a source in the TSC, speaking to Mada Masr, voiced doubts about the UAE’s intentions in seeking a resolution to the crisis. Any meaningful step toward an agreement, the source said, must begin with the immediate cessation of Emirati support for the RSF in its war against the Sudanese state.

The source stressed that the Sudanese government retains a range of options for confronting the RSF, adding that Jordanian mediation would likely fail given what they described as the UAE’s lack of transparency and continued denial of its role in supporting the RSF’s military campaign.

In parallel, Sudan’s government spokesperson Khaled al-Eaisar issued a call on Thursday to China — as a friendly country with longstanding historical ties and strategic mutual interests — to urgently intervene with the UAE. He accused Abu Dhabi of breaching its obligations under arms procurement agreements and end-user certificates with China by supplying the RSF with Chinese-made suicide and strategic drones. 

The RSF, backed by the UAE, has been deploying these drones to threaten Sudan’s national security, targeting and destroying critical infrastructure, Eaisar said.

“We in the Sudanese government view the UAE’s involvement in fueling the war and committing massacres against the Sudanese people as grounds for the Chinese government to take a firm and urgent stance to disable the technologies used in operating these drones,” Eaisar said. “That is in order to uphold its international credibility and honor its longstanding relationship with Sudan and its people.”