Sudanese army expels paramilitary forces from the center of the capital, Khartoum.
Commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan visited the presidential palace and airport in a demonstration of military control.
(Reuters) – The Sudanese army has driven its rival, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), out of most of the city of Khartoum, residents said on Wednesday (26), as the army commander visited the presidential palace and the capital's airport — in a move that marks a significant military advance, although the war itself is still far from over.
According to residents, RSF fighters retreated and the army took over the city center after two years of a devastating conflict that is dividing the vast Sudanese territory into rival control zones. RSF remains heavily entrenched in the west of the country.
General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan landed at Khartoum airport — located in the central region of the capital — and toured the presidential palace, according to a statement released by the sovereign council he leads, highlighting the military's control of the area.
In an official statement, the army stated that Burhan's flight was the first to land at the airport since the beginning of the conflict in April 2023. The institution also declared that it had taken an important RSF base south of the capital, considered the last major stronghold of the paramilitary militia in Khartoum state.
Drone footage released by the army shows dozens of people crossing a dam, allegedly RSF members retreating along the Nile River. Reuters has not been able to independently verify whether the images actually depict RSF forces, which has not yet commented on the recent military developments.
The army's advances in central Sudan, with the recapture of neighborhoods in the capital and other territories, occur at a time when RSF is consolidating its control in the west, hardening the battlefronts and threatening to push the country towards de facto partition.
The war, which began two years ago during an attempted democratic transition in Sudan, has triggered what the United Nations describes as the world's largest humanitarian crisis, with episodes of famine in several regions and disease outbreaks.
The conflict in Sudan has already forced 12,5 million people to leave their homes, many of them seeking refuge in neighboring countries.
