Sudanese Army Recaptures the City of Bara in North Kordofan

North Kordofan, Bara – Sudanese Armed Forces, joint and supporting forces, mobilized groups, and the popular resistance continued their advance in North Kordofan, entering the city of Bara.

The Sudanese army regained control of the city of Bara in North Kordofan on Thursday after several days of battles with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), while the exchange of shelling caused civilian deaths in the area.

A source in the Sudanese army told Al Jazeera that Bara was recaptured after fierce fighting with the RSF.

The source explained that the army, backed by allied military formations, destroyed RSF defenses around this strategic city and took control of it.

Meanwhile, the “Sudan Doctors Network” announced that 3 people were killed and 14 wounded as a result of the crossfire between the army and the RSF in Bara during the recent clashes.

Commenting on the army’s recapture of Bara, Darfur region governor Minni Arko Minnawi wrote on his Facebook page that the achievement was “a victory for all Sudanese, and a sign of imminent salvation, and that Al-Fashir and Darfur will be safe again.”

Heavy fighting in Al-Fashir
In recent weeks, Al-Fashir has witnessed the heaviest attacks since the start of the war, as the army holds the city while the RSF maintains a siege around it, causing dozens of deaths.

The development in Kordofan comes as part of the army’s plans to retake large areas in the central region of the country, much of which remains under RSF control.

The RSF had seized Bara in the early months of its war with the army in April 2023, using it as a launch point for attacks on El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan State — making Bara strategically significant.

Drone downed
For its part, the RSF did not comment on the reports of the army’s recapture of Bara.

However, in a statement on X, the RSF said it had downed, for the second time in a week, a Turkish-made “Akinci” drone in the city of Al-Khuwei in Kordofan, western Sudan.

It claimed it brought down the drone while it was targeting civilians. The Sudanese army has not commented on the RSF’s claim.

According to Sudanese news outlets, the army is fighting to retake Al-Khuwei, the largest locality in West Kordofan, in order to open the road toward the Darfur region.

Displacement from Al-Fashir
Meanwhile, more than 650 wounded people have fled the besieged city of Al-Fashir in North Darfur since mid-August, undertaking arduous journeys without medical care, according to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

The organization said hundreds of injured arrived at its hospital in the town of Tawila, about 60 km from Al-Fashir.

It explained that some arrived “on foot, bleeding from gunshot wounds or severe whipping,” according to Sylvain Benico, MSF’s project coordinator.

The statement noted that MSF hospitals in North, Central, and South Darfur received 99 wounded on Wednesday alone, four of whom were already dead upon arrival.

Alongside the violence, Al-Fashir and the nearby displacement camps are suffering from famine and the spread of cholera due to a lack of clean water and health services.

The Sudanese army controls northern and eastern Sudan, while the RSF controls most of Darfur and parts of the south.