Sudan Army Retakes Key Highway To Besieged El-Obeid

Sudan’s military has regained full control of the Al Sadarat highway, a strategic 350-kilometre route linking the capital Khartoum to the besieged city of El-Obeid, following two days of heavy fighting against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), two military sources told Agence France-Presse on Monday.

The advance pushed Rapid Support Forces fighters west of El-Obeid, away from the North Kordofan state capital they had sought to encircle, and opens a second supply route to El-Obeid and beyond, one of the sources said.

The capture of the Al Sadarat highway will allow the army to move troops, weapons, fuel and supplies to El-Obeid more quickly, replacing a longer alternative route through White Nile State, while also blocking the Rapid Support Forces’ push to seize the city.

Sudanese troops from Khartoum linked up with army forces in El-Obeid following the advance, with civilians celebrating their arrival in the besieged town, according to footage shared by Sudan Tribune.

The Rapid Support Forces had controlled most of the Al Sadarat highway since April 2023, when war erupted between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary force over plans to integrate the RSF into the national military.

The conflict quickly spread across the country, turning into one of Africa’s deadliest wars.
About half a million people are trapped in El-Obeid, where the United Nations has warned of a humanitarian catastrophe, with residents facing intense Rapid Support Forces drone attacks.

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) held an urgent debate on the deteriorating situation in El-Obeid earlier this month, with human rights chief Volker Turk warning of a repeat of the atrocities documented in El Fasher.

For civilians, securing the road could also improve humanitarian access to communities affected by the ongoing war, and potentially reopen an important trade route for livestock and agricultural products from the Kordofan region.