Sudan’s army said on Tuesday it had repelled a Rapid Support Forces attack on a strategic city in southern Kordofan, a day after the RSF declared a unilateral three-month ceasefire.
In a statement, the military — which has been at war with the RSF since April 2023 — said its troops had “pushed back an assault” on an infantry base in the town of Babanusa.
Babanusa is the army’s last stronghold in West Kordofan state.
It lies on a highway connecting the region to Darfur, where the army last month lost its last base in El-Fasher city.
The army, which is battling to stop the RSF from gaining more territory in the Kordofan region, said it destroyed several RSF vehicles, captured others and killed a number of field commanders along with “hundreds of mercenaries”.
AFP could not independently verify the claims, with much of the Kordofan region suffering a months-long communications blackout.
The RSF on Monday announced a ceasefire “in response to international efforts, including the initiative of US President Donald Trump and mediators” from the Quad group that includes the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.
The army-aligned government’s information minister Khalid al-Aiser called the RSF announcement an “obvious political manoeuvre”, days after army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan accused the Quad of bias.
US Africa envoy Massad Boulos said on Tuesday that both sides had rejected the most recent truce proposal.
Over two years of conflict, both sides have repeatedly violated every ceasefire agreement. Diplomatic efforts to halt the fighting have failed to make any breakthrough.
International attention on the conflict has intensified since the RSF captured El-Fasher last month after a punishing 18-month siege, prompting reports of atrocities and possible genocide.
The United Nations warns that similar patterns of violence are unfolding in Kordofan.
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© Agence France-Presse
