The Rapid Support Forces have moved thousands of fighters from Nyala to Sudan’s Blue Nile region through neighboring countries, while also sending other military columns toward Kordofan, Darfur24 reported, citing three RSF military sources and local residents.
The reported movements come amid growing military build-ups by Sudan’s warring parties in Blue Nile and Kordofan, raising fears of new clashes in both regions as civilians continue to face worsening humanitarian conditions in the fourth year of the war.
The sources told Darfur24 that the RSF had transported more than six batches of fighters through Nyala International Airport over the past year and this year. The fighters were then sent to Libya for advanced training on light and heavy weapons, with the training period lasting up to six months.
According to the sources, the fighters are later deployed across several combat fronts, including one known as the “northern axis,” where RSF elements are positioned in the border triangle between Sudan, Egypt and Libya.
Other groups are reportedly moved through South Sudan and Ethiopia toward the Blue Nile region, which has witnessed heavy fighting in recent months.
The sources said the deployed fighters include both longtime RSF members and new recruits. They are gathered in Nyala from several areas, including Um Dukhun, For Baranga and Kabkabiya, through officers responsible for recruitment drives. Those officers receive financial incentives based on the number of recruits they bring in.
The fighters reportedly undergo screening procedures before receiving salaries and combat bonuses. Each fighter receives a wartime salary as well as a financial incentive of about $400 before deployment, while a single batch is said to include around 18 to 19 companies.
Local residents in Nyala told Darfur24 that several family members who had joined the RSF returned from Libya after spending about seven months there, following their departure in October last year.
