Sudan’s El-Fasher: Army says it repelled new RSF attack

KHARTOUM, Sudan/ISTANBUL

The Sudanese army said Friday it repelled a new attack by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state in western Sudan, claiming it inflicted heavy losses on lives and equipment.

“The 6th Infantry Division and supporting forces in El-Fasher repelled a new attack by the RSF militia today,” it said in a statement.

It added that its forces “inflicted significant losses on the enemy in equipment and personnel and maintained full control over all areas inside the city.”

Meanwhile, the grassroots El-Fasher Resistance Committees said the city remains under tense calm, with the intensity of clashes subsiding but no final casualty toll has yet been confirmed.

The RSF has not issued any comment on the attack or the army’s statement as of 1630GMT.

El-Fasher is a vital hub for humanitarian operations in Darfur but has been under a strict RSF siege and recurrent clashes for more than a year, despite international efforts to broker a humanitarian truce and allow aid deliveries, which have so far failed.

The army and RSF have been fighting a war since April 2023 that has killed more than 20,000 victims and displaced 14 million, according to the UN and local authorities. Research from US universities, however, estimates the death toll at around 130,000.