Sudan’s military has gained control of a major bridge linking the eastern and southern parts of Khartoum, marking another strategic victory against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) as the conflict approaches its second year.
This latest advance comes just days after the army reclaimed parts of northern Khartoum from the RSF, which has controlled large sections of the capital since the war began in April 2023.
Despite the military’s gains, the RSF continues to hold key locations, including the central market, the presidential palace, and several districts in the southern and western parts of Khartoum. The group also maintains strongholds in the central Kordofan region and most of Darfur, where it is besieging government forces in the city of el-Fashir, the capital of North Darfur.
On Friday, residents and medical sources reported that the RSF launched attacks on the famine-stricken Zamzam displacement camp, south of el-Fashir, in an apparent bid to consolidate its control over Darfur.
The war has displaced an estimated 11.4 million people, with more than eight million internally displaced and three million seeking refuge in neighboring countries, according to aid organizations.
“Sudan’s regional neighbors say they want the conflict to end,” Al Jazeera’s Mohamed Vall reported from Sennar. “Peace efforts have been attempted in Jeddah, Cairo, Addis Ababa, and Geneva, but all have failed.”
Both the RSF and the army have expressed willingness to negotiate but remain unwilling to accept each other’s conditions. Each side still believes it can achieve a decisive military victory.
At a high-level humanitarian conference in Addis Ababa on Friday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres described the crisis in Sudan as one of “staggering scale and brutality.”
“This is a catastrophe that demands sustained and urgent attention,” Guterres said, calling for an immediate halt to the flow of weapons into the country.
With nearly 25 million people facing acute hunger, according to UN estimates, aid agencies say a ceasefire is essential to ensuring humanitarian relief reaches those in need.
Guterres urged world leaders to step up peace efforts and humanitarian aid, particularly ahead of the holy month of Ramadan.
“We must do more – and do more now – to help the people of Sudan out of this nightmare.”
