The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), led by Gen. Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan (currently attending the UN General Assembly), launched a major new offensive on Sept. 26 to retake the capital of Khartoum away from control by the rebel paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The RSF has controlled the majority of Khartoum since April 2023.
Various news agencies have reported on the fighting, stating that the SAF has used heavy artillery, fighter jet airstrikes and drones; the RSF has no such capabilities. The army has secured at least one bridge, and has been able to cross several other bridges that connect Omdurman to Khartoum. Al Jazeera reported that several residents confirmed that the army has control of three major crossings in total.
Al Jazeera also quoted a local activist in Khartoum: “There is a bond between the army and the Sudanese people. It is our soldiers and people that are in the army,” said the activist from Omdurman, a city that forms part of the wider state of Khartoum.
