Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) leader Abdelaziz al-Hilu has ordered an immediate halt to fighting in parts of South Kordofan, backing a mediation initiative proposed by Rapid Support Forces commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, aimed at containing deadly communal violence in the Nuba Mountains.
Al-Hilu instructed SPLM-N forces to cease hostilities in Kauda and Heiban county after Hemedti proposed an intervention to defuse escalating tensions in the area, according to Sudan Tribune.
The directive calls for an immediate end to military operations as well as inflammatory rhetoric and incitement, creating space for social and humanitarian mediation efforts to proceed.
Al-Hilu formally welcomed Hemedti’s initiative in a decree, marking an effort by leaders aligned within Sudan’s broader TASIS coalition to prevent the local violence from escalating further.
The decision follows days of growing tensions involving the Otoro and Shawaya communities in the Nuba Mountains. Local sources said the dispute had increasingly spread into the ranks of the SPLM-N’s armed wing.
Community leaders have accused SPLM-N fighters of attacking Otoro-populated areas, burning homes in around eight villages and forcing residents to flee into nearby mountains. The allegations have not been independently verified.
Relatives said some detainees had suffered deteriorating health and had been denied family visits. Formal charges or legal proceedings against them could not be independently confirmed. Local community organisations have called for their release.
The ceasefire order represents the latest attempt to contain internal tensions in South Kordofan at a time when the region is also becoming increasingly important to the wider Sudan conflict.
The SPLM-N, led by al-Hilu, is allied with the RSF and other political and armed groups within the Sudan Founding Alliance, or TASIS, which has established a parallel governing structure in areas outside the control of the Port Sudan authorities.
