Sennar offensive
| Sennar offensive | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Sudanese civil war (2023-present) | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
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Al-Bara' ibn Malik Battalion[1]
 Egypt (alleged)[3] |
 Rapid Support Forces | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
 Major General Ayoub Abdel-QaderShams al-Din Kabbashi[5]Abdelbasit AbdelmonimFatah al-Aleem Al-Hadi Al-Shobhi Abu Aqla Kikil (from October 2024) |
Abdel Rahman Albishi †[6] Abu Aqla Kikil  | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
|
Per RSF: 21 vehicles seized[7] 5 vehicles destroyed 150 killed Dozens captured |
15 vehicles destroyed[8] 450 killed[9] | ||||||||
| ~ 1300 civilian missing since RSF assault on Sinja"More than 1,300 missing after Singa incidents". | |||||||||
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The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has waged a major offensive against the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) in Sennar State, resulting in widespread violence and displacement,[10][11] as part of the ongoing Sudanese civil war.
Background
[edit]On 15 April 2023, tension between the RSF and SAF escalated into a war. The Rapid Support Forces is led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, commonly referred to as Hemedti, and the Sudanese Armed Forces is led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan. RSF was able to gain areas across the country. After the RSF's capture of Wad Madani, it was able to make its way to Sennar State.[12] A full offensive on the state was launched on 30 June 2024.
Offensive
[edit]The Sennar Offensive began with the RSF attacking the village of Jebal Moya in Sennar province. The conflict soon spread to the provincial capital of Singa, where intense fighting erupted.[10]
RSF fighters in pickup trucks mounted with automatic rifles rampaged through Singa, looting houses and shops, and taking over the city's main hospital. The RSF claimed to have seized the military's main facility, the 17th Infantry Division Headquarters, in Singa.
After the RSF captured the state capital Sinjah, it expanded eastward and captured Dinder.[13] The SAF recaptured the Dinder on 4 July 2024 and claimed that the RSF retreated to Sinja.[14] The statement also claimed to have inflicted heavy losses, destroying 7 vehicles, seizing 9 others, killing 170 soldiers, and captured an unknown SAF commander. A video was also shown of RSF fighters on the Dinder Bridge.[15]
On 5 July 2024, the SAF recaptured the city of El-Suki as well, a city 25 miles east of Sennar.[16]
On 20 July 2024,[17] Lieutant General Abdel Rahman Albishi, a RSF commander leading military operations in Sennar and Blue Nile, was killed in an airstrike in Singa;[18] 400 fighters fighting under his command were also killed.[19] Albishi was originally from Bout, Blue Nile State, and from the Rufa'a tribe.[20]
By 5 October 2024, the SAF recaptured Jebel Moya.[21] The SAF renewed an offensive in Dinder on 19 October 2024. The army reportedly captured and destroyed an unknown number of vehicles and also established checkpoints in surrounding villages. [22][23] By 23 October 2024, the SAF recaptured Dinder after a few days of battling for the town.[24][25]
On 20 October 2024, The SAF announced the defection of Abu Aqla Kakil, the RSF's commander in Gezira State.[26]
By 23 October, The Sudanese army seizes Al-Dinder from Rapid Support Forces.[27] Since then, The Sudanese army kept pushing towards Singa the capital of Sennar State. Liberating villages from the brutal RSF control and torture warfare used all against International Law.
On 7 November 2024, the SAF arrested dozens of suspected RSF collaborators and recruits in villages west of Dinder.[28]
In 22 November, The SAF were in the doorsteps of Singa. Heavy fighting can be heard in the outskirts of the city with multiple wounded being reported.
By 23 November, The SAF stormed the city and took main control of the main market, hospitals, and the 17th infantry division headquarters. Heavy celebrations flooded the streets of Singa with many refugees who were prior displaced by the RSF are returning to their homes.[29]
Impact and aftermath
[edit]The violence forced about 57,000 people to flee their homes. Those fleeing Singa arrived in Gedaref, Blue Nile, White Nile, and Kassala states. Aid groups in Gedaref, which is already hosting more than 600,000 people, started planning for the arrival of those fleeing Sennar.
The Sennar Offensive has had severe humanitarian consequences, with potential future disruption of large-scale agricultural programs in the nearby provinces of Blue Nile, White Nile, and Jazira.
References
[edit]- ^ Monitor, Sudan War. "Sudan army regains control of Sinja". sudanwarmonitor.com.
- ^ "Sudanese communities take up arms as the army fails to protect civilians".
- ^ "Sudan's El Burhan visits Jebel Moya after army recapture". Dabanga Radio TV Online. 14 October 2024.
- ^ Monitor, Sudan War. "Map: RSF incursion into Blue Nile State". sudanwarmonitor.com.
- ^ "Sudan army recaptures key Jebel Moya region from RSF". Sudan Tribune. 6 October 2024.
- ^ "RSF claims victory in Al-Dinder, second capture in days". Sudan Tribune. 5 July 2024.
- ^ "Fighting escalates in eastern Sudan's Sennar". Dabanga Radio TV Online. 25 July 2024.
- ^ "Sudan Nashra: Military recaptures Jebel Moya, road linking White Nile, Sennar | Transitional Sovereignty Council source: Burhan is to relocate to Atbara, govt denies". Mada Masr.
- ^ "RSF commander killed in Butana".
- ^ a b "Looting and fighting reported in a central Sudan city as paramilitary group attacks military troops". AP News. 2024-06-30. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
- ^ AFP, Staff Writer With (2024-07-03). "Over 55,000 Flee Sudan Town as RSF Battles Army: UN". The Defense Post. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
- ^ Monitor, Sudan War. "RSF consolidate control over Jezira and reach the gates of Sennar". sudanwarmonitor.com.
- ^ "RSF consolidates control over Sinjah, expands eastward". Sudan Tribune. 1 July 2024.
- ^ "Sudanese army retakes A-Dinder from RSF". Sudan Tribune. 5 July 2024.
- ^ Post, Sudans (6 July 2024). "RSF regains control of Dinder after clashes with SAF and allies". Sudans Post.
- ^ Monitor, Sudan War. "Map: Sudan army advances in eastern states". sudanwarmonitor.com.
- ^ "Senior RSF commander killed in Sennar battles". Darfur24 News Website. 20 July 2024.
- ^ "RSF commander killed in Sennar".
- ^ "Key Sudanese RSF commander killed".
- ^ "RSF Commander Killed in Sudan Airstrike | Sada Elbalad". see.news.
- ^ "Sudan army recaptures key Jebel Moya region from RSF". Sudan Tribune. 6 October 2024.
- ^ "Sudan army recaptures key Jebel Moya region from RSF". Sudan Tribune. 6 October 2024.
- ^ "Army clashes with RSF, reaches Dinder outskirts in southeastern Sudan". Sudan Tribune. 20 October 2024.
- ^ "Sudanese army seizes Al-Dinder from Rapid Support Forces". Sudan Tribune. 23 October 2024.
- ^ Monitor, Sudan War. "Map: Sudan army advances in eastern states". sudanwarmonitor.com.
- ^ "RSF commander defects to Sudanese army in Al Jazirah state". Sudan Tribune. 2024-10-20. Retrieved 2024-10-20.
- ^ "Sudanese army seizes Al-Dinder from Rapid Support Forces".
- ^ "Sudan army arrests RSF supporters near al-Dinder". Sudan Tribune. 8 November 2024.
- ^ SudanTribune (2024-11-22). "Sudanese army tightens grip on Sennar as RSF advances in Blue Nile". Sudan Tribune. Retrieved 2024-11-23.
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