KHARTOUM / ISTANBUL

The Sudanese army repelled a heavy attack by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Sunday on the city of Babnousa in West Kordofan state, a military source said.

“Troops from the 22nd Infantry Division in Babnousa thwarted an RSF assault that lasted more than four hours,” the source, who requested anonymity, told Anadolu.

RSF fighters used heavy and light weapons as well as drones during the attack, the source said, adding that the army inflicted significant losses on the rebel group in personnel and equipment.

There was no immediate comment from the army or the RSF on the report.

The RSF said Saturday on its Telegram channel that it had sent military reinforcements toward Babnousa as part of its attempts to seize the city.

Heavy clashes involving drones and heavy and light weapons resumed between the army and the RSF on Wednesday in Babnousa.

In recent days, the army has air-dropped supplies to its forces inside Babnousa, which the RSF has surrounded since January 2024.

The battles in Babnousa are part of wider fighting that has swept across North, West and South Kordofan between the Sudanese army and the rebel group.

Last month, the RSF seized El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, and was accused of massacres. The group controls all five Darfur states, out of Sudan’s 18 states, while the army holds most of the remaining 13 states, including Khartoum.

Darfur makes up about one-fifth of Sudan’s territory, but most of the country’s 50 million people live in army-held areas.

The conflict in Sudan between the army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has killed at least 40,000 people and displaced 12 million, according to the World Health Organization.