KHARTOUM, Sudan/ISTANBUL 

The Sudanese army announced Wednesday that its forces regained control of areas in Blue Nile state in the country’s southeast following battles against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–North (SPLM-N). 

“Our forces succeeded in clearing the Baldagu area and its surroundings in southern Blue Nile state of troops of the RSF militia and SPLM-North fighters,” army spokesperson Nabil Abdullah said in a statement.

Neither the RSF nor SPLM-North commented on the army’s statement immediately.

The military maintains control over large parts of Blue Nile, where it has been fighting SPLM-North since 2011. The rebel group demands autonomous governance for both Blue Nile and South Kordofan states.

In a separate statement Wednesday, the army said it destroyed a “large force” of RSF fighters in Dilling, the second-largest city in South Kordofan state.

The military shared video footage on its official Facebook page, which it said showed Dilling residents celebrating alongside army troops.

The RSF and the army have been locked in a brutal power struggle since April 2023, resulting in thousands of deaths and pushing Sudan into one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Thousands of people have been killed and millions displaced.