Sudan army deploys brigade to Blue Nile amid RSF clashes

The Sudanese army’s 4th Infantry Division in Damazin announced on Saturday that the “Elite Brigade” of the security and intelligence service had departed for the Bakori operational axis in southeastern Blue Nile state. “The deployment aims to reinforce forces stationed in the area, boost their operational capabilities and support ongoing military operations,” the division said in a statement. Maj. Gen. Ismail al-Tayeb Hussein, commander of the division, emphasized readiness and combat preparedness while seeing off the troops earlier in the day.

RSF advances and drone incidents

The deployment followed a visit by Hussein to the Fazogli areas on Friday, a day after the RSF claimed to have seized the Bakori and Sarkam military bases southeast of Damazin, the state capital. The army had not commented on those claims as of Saturday morning, though it reported shooting down a hostile strategic drone in Blue Nile on Thursday after the aircraft crossed from Ethiopia — the third such interception within a week.

Conflict background

Fighting between the Sudanese army and RSF has raged since April 2023, killing tens of thousands and displacing approximately 13 million people according to UN estimates. Alongside Blue Nile and Darfur, combat has continued unabated across the three states of the Kordofan region — North, West and South Kordofan — since late October.