KHARTOUM, Sudan/ISTANBUL

Sudanese army forces recaptured the Al-Silk area in the Blue Nile state near the border with Ethiopia from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the military said on Monday.

In a statement, the army’s 4th Infantry Division said its forces regained control of the area “after a well-planned military operation that resulted in the rout of the (RSF) militias.”

The statement said the clashes inflicted heavy losses in lives and equipment on the RSF and their ally, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N).

There was no immediate comment from the rebel group on the statement.

On Sunday, the army thwarted an attack launched by the RSF on the Al-Silk and Malkan areas in Blue Nile state.

Military sources earlier told Anadolu that army forces had driven the RSF and the SPLM out of the town of Habila in South Kordofan.

The army controls large parts of Blue Nile, while the SPLM-N has fought the central government since 2011, seeking autonomy in the regions of South Kordofan and Blue Nile.

Alongside Darfur, Sudan’s three Kordofan states have witnessed intense fighting in recent weeks between the army and the RSF, triggering the displacement of tens of thousands of civilians.

Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five states in the western Darfur region, except for parts of North Darfur that remain under army control. The army holds most areas of the remaining 13 states across the south, north, east and center of the country, including the capital, Khartoum.

The conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has killed thousands of people and displaced millions.