Sudanese army seizes strategic town in South Kordofan following clashes with paramilitary Rapid Support Forces

​​​​​​​By Adel Abdelrheem and Mohammad Sio

KHARTOUM, Sudan/ISTANBUL (AA) - The Sudanese army captured the town of al-Hamadi in South Kordofan state on Tuesday following intense battles with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a military source told Anadolu.

The source, who requested anonymity, said the army drove RSF forces out of al-Hamadi, “one of their major strongholds” of the group.

Footage by army personnel on social media appeared to show soldiers deployed across the town and inside government buildings.

The RSF has not commented on the developments.

Separately, fierce clashes erupted Tuesday in the city of al-Khuwei in West Kordofan state between the army and the RSF.

The RSF claimed control of al-Khuwei on May 3 after taking the administrative capital of West Kordofan, al-Nuhud, the previous day.

But the army later announced it had retaken al-Khuwei and the town of Umm Sumaymah in North Kordofan after renewed fighting.

Al-Nuhud had served as the army’s stronghold in West Kordofan and was declared the state's temporary capital last July after its original capital, al-Fula, fell to RSF forces in June.

The RSF maintains control over parts of West Kordofan, including al-Fula.

The RSF and the army have been locked in a brutal power struggle since April 2023, resulting in thousands of deaths and pushing Sudan into one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

More than 20,000 people have been killed and 15 million displaced, according to UN and local figures.

US-based researchers estimate the actual death toll to be as high as 130,000.