The Sudan Founding Alliance (TASIS) has claimed control of the strategic Wad al-Mahi locality in Sudan’s southeastern Blue Nile region, including the capture of a senior army commander, as fighting intensifies near the Ethiopian border.
Media outlet RMC reported on Thursday that coalition forces had taken control of the locality following clashes with Sudan’s military, marking what the alliance described as a significant advance in its eastern military campaign.
The outlet also claimed that the commander responsible for the military area had been captured during the operation.
The identity of the detained officer, the circumstances of his capture and the extent of TASIS control could not be independently verified.
The reported advance follows several days of fighting between TASIS forces, comprising the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), and troops loyal to the army-aligned Port Sudan authorities.
The area lies along a strategically important corridor connecting Sudan’s Blue Nile region with Ethiopia and approaches to the Roseires Dam, one of the country’s major hydroelectric installations.
Conflicting accounts of battlefield control
Local Sudanese media reported heavy fighting around Umm Darfa in Wad al-Mahi on Thursday, citing military sources who said army troops were confronting an offensive by the RSF and SPLM-N.
The reports did not independently establish which side controlled the area after the clashes.
Earlier this week, TASIS forces announced the capture of several positions in the eastern Blue Nile region, including Jabal al-Nimr, Minza and Bashkarkad, although Sudan’s military disputed the extent of the alliance’s advances.
The army’s Fourth Infantry Division previously said its forces had repelled attacks in the same area, reporting casualties and the destruction of military equipment belonging to the attacking forces.
These competing accounts highlight the difficulty of independently establishing territorial control in an active combat zone where both sides regularly announce battlefield victories.
The latest TASIS claim, if confirmed, would represent a further expansion of coalition positions in eastern Blue Nile, where fighting has intensified around routes connecting the Ethiopian frontier to Sudan’s interior.
Strategic pressure on Blue Nile
Wad al-Mahi occupies an important position near the Roseires reservoir and eastern approaches to the regional capital, Ed Damazin.
Military developments in the locality have wider implications for access to border routes, agricultural areas and infrastructure connecting Blue Nile with neighbouring Ethiopia.
In an investigation published on Friday, Mada Masr reported that TASIS-linked forces had advanced into the Kadalo mountain area after an attack launched from the Ethiopian side of the border earlier this month.
The report cited military sources who described fighting around Minza, Jabal al-Nimr and Bashkarkad, alongside subsequent army airstrikes against coalition positions.
It also reported that approximately 2,800 people had been displaced from ten villages in Wad al-Mahi, citing figures from the International Organization for Migration.
The fighting has coincided with a series of drone attacks on Ed Damazin and surrounding areas, including strikes affecting official residences and civilian infrastructure.
As the military campaign continues, control of Wad al-Mahi remains contested, with neither the army nor TASIS providing independently verifiable evidence establishing complete control of the locality.
The latest developments underscore the growing importance of Blue Nile as a major front in Sudan’s war, particularly as regional tensions intensify along the Ethiopian frontier.
