The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) claimed control of two towns in Sudan‘s North Darfur state after the withdrawal of the Joint Forces aligned with the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).
In a statement on Wednesday, the RSF said it had “liberated” Abu Gamra and Um Baro areas in North Darfur from “the remnants of terrorism and mercenary movements.”
The RSF advancement in North Darfur came a day after the leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement, Minni Arko Minawi, called on the residents of North Darfur-Chad border areas to defend their land against “invaders,” reported Sudan Tribune.
According to source from the Joint Forces, the troops left their defensive positions in Abu Gamra and Um Baro to protect civilians from potential harm.
The source added that the RSF and allied fighters are targeting remote areas along the Chad border to force civilian displacement and establish a new supply route through the Tine gateway.
There was no official comment from the SAF on RSF claims.
In late October 2025, the RSF seized El-Fasher, the capital city of North Darfur and the army’s last stronghold in the region, unleashing a wave of atrocities against civilians.
Currently, Sudan is split in two, with the SAF holding the center, north and east while the RSF controls all five states of the Darfur region in the west and parts of Kordofan in the south.
The war in Sudan broke out in April 2023, causing one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises, killing thousands and displacing over 12 million people amid spreading famine and cholera outbreaks.
Peace efforts to end the conflict have faltered, with Sudan topping the 2026 Emergency Watchlist, issued by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) aid organization, for the third consecutive year.
