Sudanese army retakes strategic town from paramilitaries

Sudan’s army has recaptured the town of Bara in North Kordofan on 5 March from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces(RSF) after clashes that killed at least 51 people across the region, reports AL24 News and agencies.

The Sudanese army said it had retaken Bara after battling with RSF fighters. The town lies on a key highway linking Khartoum with the North Kordofan state capital El-Obeid.

Bara had been used by the RSF as a staging point for attacks on North Kordofan’s state capital El-Obeid, as the paramilitary force have attempted to retake the city.  Fighting over control of El-Obeid has displaced tens of thousands of people in recent months.

Entering Bara was described by a member of the Sudanese army as “a major turning point” who added that it would affect the situation in El-Obeid as well as the wider North Kordofan area.

A drone strike was later reported on a state public prosecution building in El-Obeid, with RSF blamed for the attack.

Other clashes in the region took place between 4 and 5 March, with the city of Dilling also facing artillery and drone strikes. A source at the city’s hospital said 28 people were killed and 60 others injured.

Dilling had been under siege by the RSF until the army retook control of the city in January.

Fighting in Kordofan is part of the wider war between Sudan’s army and the RSF.

Since the start of the war in 2023, violence has spread across Sudan including Khartoum, Darfur and the Kordofan region. Tens of thousands of people have been killed and millions displaced.

Kordofan lies between central Sudan and the Darfur region and currently the centre of the fighting, as both sides attempt to gain control of key towns, cities and transport routes.

 

AL24 News and agencies, Maghrebi.org