By Micah Jonah
January 12, 2026
Sudan’s army says it is preparing a large scale military operation to retake the Kordofan and Darfur regions from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces RSF, as the country’s civil war enters its third year.
In a statement, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) said it has completed assessments of RSF capabilities and redeployed multiple military formations in readiness for an offensive that would exceed the scale and planning of last year’s operation to recapture Khartoum state.
Reporting from Khartoum, observers said the army has intensified troop movements across Kordofan, while launching air and drone strikes on RSF positions in both Kordofan and Darfur. These actions are widely seen as preliminary steps ahead of a broader assault aimed at regaining lost territory.
The SAF said on Friday that recent air and ground operations inflicted heavy losses on the RSF, including the destruction of about 240 combat vehicles and the killing of hundreds of fighters. The military added that ground forces had pushed RSF units out of wide areas, with operations continuing to pursue remaining elements.
Darfur Governor, Minni Arko Minnawi said the latest army advances had prevented the RSF from laying siege to el Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan. However, residents in the region say they remain unconvinced, insisting that real security will only come when RSF forces fully withdraw from occupied areas, allowing displaced people to return home.
Violence has continued despite the army’s claims of progress. A drone attack on Monday in Habila, South Kordofan, reportedly killed five people. The strike was attributed to the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement North, an armed group allied with the RSF.
The RSF’s resurgence across Darfur and Kordofan has displaced millions more civilians, worsening an already dire humanitarian situation. Both the army and the RSF have been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity, while the RSF has faced specific allegations of atrocities in Darfur that the United Nations says may amount to genocide.
The UN recently described el Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, as a “crime scene” after gaining access to the city for the first time since its capture by the RSF in October. Aid workers found the city largely deserted following mass killings, widespread detentions, and an 18 month siege that forced more than 100,000 residents to flee.
More than 33 million people are now at risk of starvation, according to humanitarian groups, as the war passes its 1,000th day. The conflict has displaced about 11 million people internally and across borders, creating what aid agencies describe as the world’s largest displacement and hunger crisis.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Kamil Idris announced the government’s return to Khartoum after nearly three years of operating from Port Sudan. The government fled the capital in the early days of the war in April 2023, when the RSF quickly overran much of the city.
“Today, we return, and the government of hope returns to the national capital,” Idris said, as authorities continue a gradual reestablishment of state institutions following the army’s recapture of Khartoum.
