SAF confirms loss of Bara as fighting escalates across Sudan

The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) have confirmed that the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have taken control of Bara in North Kordofan, saying their troops withdrew from the city after what they described as a “heroic battle”.

SAF spokesperson Col Nabeel Abdallah said in a statement earlier today, that commanders ordered the withdrawal based on field assessments. He added that RSF forces suffered heavy losses during the fighting.

The RSF announced the recapture of the strategic city on Monday, just ten days after the SAF had regained control, marking the third time Bara has changed hands since the war began in April 2023.

‘Drone downed over El Obeid’

In a separate development, the SAF said its air defences shot down a hostile drone over El Obeid in North Kordofan state on Tuesday morning.

‘Clashes in North Darfur’

The SAF rejected RSF claims of a major advance in North Darfur, saying its forces and allied units repelled an attack on El Tina and pursued the retreating fighters.

The army said it destroyed 35 RSF combat vehicles and seized a further 49, reporting dozens of casualties among the attacking force. The RSF, however, had earlier claimed control of the nearby Karnoi area, with fighters circulating videos said to have been filmed inside El Tina, a town on the border with Chad and Sudan’s North Darfur.

The competing accounts add to conflicting claims that emerged from North Darfur on Monday, after the RSF announced it had taken Karnoi and said SAF and their allied Joint Forces had withdrawn following heavy losses.

Mutwakil Ali, deputy spokesperson for the Joint Force, rejected that version of events. He said joint troops repelled the RSF attack on El Tina, after fierce clashes, and added that forces would carry out combing operations in the Karnoi area.

Both sides released videos purporting to support their claims, which Radio Dabanga could not independently verify.

‘Fighting in South Kordofan’

In South Kordofan, the SAF said it also repelled an RSF assault on Delling, destroying five combat vehicles and capturing four others, along with motorcycles and communications equipment.

Images shared on social media appeared to show casualties in Delling, although Radio Dabanga could not independently verify them.