RSF Advances in Sudan as 18,000 Flee West Darfur

Fighting between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) has intensified across Sudan, leading to mass displacement and a deteriorating humanitarian situation. In West Darfur's Sirba locality, clashes displaced approximately 18,000 people from over 20 villages over two days, with thousands crossing the border into Chad or seeking refuge in El Geneina.

While the SAF repelled a large-scale RSF attack on the strategic town of Bir Saliba, the RSF has successfully encircled El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, threatening a full-scale assault. These military movements coincide with a severe resource crisis; the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that funding gaps forced the closure of three health facilities in Central Darfur, leaving 75,000 displaced people without care.

Sudan's humanitarian appeal remains critically underfunded, having received only $1.2 billion of the required $2.9 to $3 billion. As the International Organization for Migration records 8.69 million internally displaced persons nationwide, UN Personal Envoy Pekka Haavisto is meeting with the SAF, the RSF, and regional partners from the African Union and the League of Arab States to negotiate a cessation of hostilities.