The Rapid Support Forces have offered about $600 per fighter to join operations around Babanusa, West Kordofan—home to the Sudanese army’s 22nd Division—according to residents and exchange agents in East Darfur.
Residents of Al-Daein told Darfur24 that RSF units rolled out substantial reinforcements from East Darfur toward Babanusa after cash payouts. Multiple money-transfer operators reported crowds of RSF personnel converting U.S. dollars into Sudanese pounds.
Eyewitnesses said convoys carried heavy weapons on flatbed trucks under tight escort toward the city, while ambulances ferried wounded fighters to Adila for treatment. Local and civil leaders in West Kordofan asked army personnel inside the 22nd Division compound to permit a safe exit from the area; there was no immediate response.
Fierce clashes erupted Tuesday following an RSF assault on the division headquarters, which residents say has been under siege for nearly two years.
On Wednesday, the RSF claimed it downed a Turkish-made drone near Babanusa and released footage of burning wreckage. The claim could not be independently verified.
