KHARTOUM — Fighting has sharply escalated across Sudan’s three Kordofan states as the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) wage concurrent offensives to secure strategic territory and supply routes.

The renewed clashes come as the army seeks to consolidate its hold over Khartoum while pushing westward toward Darfur, where the RSF maintains strong control.

Violence has intensified in western North Kordofan, where the army is attempting to expand its control and curtail RSF movements around El-Obeid, the state capital.

The army has reinforced key roads linking El-Obeid to Bara to prevent RSF infiltration.

The RSF, which recaptured Bara on Oct. 25, continues to hold much of the state’s northern and western towns, including Jabra Al-Sheikh, Hamrat El Sheikh, Al-Mazroob, Soudari, and Umm Badr — areas that serve as gateways into North Darfur.

On Saturday, the army retook Kazgeil and Umm Dam Haj Ahmed after battles with the RSF. The two towns form a crucial corridor leading toward An-Nuhud in West Kordofan and onward to RSF-held East Darfur and its capital, El-Daein.

Heavy fighting persists in the state capital Kadugli and the city of Dilling, where RSF and allied Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–North (SPLM-N), led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu, have maintained drone and artillery attacks. Dilling has been under RSF siege for more than a year.

The RSF aims to block potential army advances westward toward Al-Fula in West Kordofan, which would open a route toward East Darfur.

On Nov. 6, at least six civilians were killed and 12 injured when joint RSF–SPLM-N shelling struck Dilling.

Babnousa — encircled by RSF and SPLM-N forces — has emerged as the most volatile frontline. The RSF controls Al-Fula, Al-Mujlad, and An-Nuhud, and released new footage Saturday showing reinforcements heading toward Babnousa.

Army forces in the town insist they will not withdraw, with Maj. Gen. Muawiya Hamad Abdullah saying: “We will fight until victory.”

Clashes involving drones, artillery, and armored vehicles have surged over the past week.

The RSF has vowed to capture Babnousa, where the army has been airdropping supplies to besieged units.

The intensified fighting has triggered new waves of displacement across all three Kordofan states.

Nearly 40,000 people have fled North Kordofan alone — including Bara, Sheikan, Rahad, Um Rawaba, and Umm Damm Haj Ahmed — since Oct. 26, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

Since the conflict erupted between the army and the RSF in April 2023, at least 40,000 people have been killed and 12 million displaced, according to the World Health Organization. — Agencies