The Sudanese army announced on Saturday that it had regained control over several key government and financial institutions in central Khartoum, including the central bank, the national intelligence headquarters, and the Sudan National Museum, following intense battles with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
This marks a major escalation in the army’s campaign to reclaim the capital, after capturing the presidential palace a day earlier. Army spokesman Nabil Abdallah said military operations were ongoing, with troops “tightening the grip” on RSF strongholds across the city.
According to military sources to AFP, the RSF had used the presidential palace as a base for elite fighters and weapons storage. A retaliatory RSF drone strike reportedly killed three journalists and several army personnel on Friday.
An RSF official confirmed that their forces had pulled back from several areas in Khartoum but insisted that fighting continues, particularly around the heavily damaged airport where RSF fighters remain entrenched.
Since the conflict erupted in April 2023, RSF fighters have overrun and looted much of central Khartoum’s institutions. The army’s latest advance appears to shift momentum in its favor following months of setbacks. Its forces now reportedly control the southern banks of the Blue Nile and the main bridge across the White Nile, linking central Khartoum to Omdurman.
Army commander General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan vowed to “liberate the entire country” in a video shared on Saturday. Addressing cheering supporters in the town of Al-Kamlin, about 100 kilometers southwest of the capital, Burhan promised that the military would continue its push despite fierce resistance.
However, analysts warn that reclaiming Khartoum will not bring an immediate end to the devastating war. The RSF, led by General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, still holds vast territory, particularly in the Darfur region and parts of the south, while the military maintains control over the country’s north and east.
The conflict has so far claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced over 12 million people, pushing Africa’s third-largest country deeper into a humanitarian crisis. Despite recent gains, Sudan’s civil war shows no signs of resolution, with both sides entrenched and international mediation efforts stalled.
