Joint “Tasis” forces, made up of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–North (SPLM-N), have imposed a tight siege around Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan state, after taking full control of the city’s entry and exit points, local sources said.
More than 25,000 civilians have reportedly been evacuated from areas expected to witness heavy fighting in the coming days, as tensions rise around the strategic city.
Two days earlier, Tasis forces announced they had captured the strategic Brono area between the cities of Dilling and Kadugli in South Kordofan, as well as Lagawa in West Kordofan, positioning themselves roughly seven kilometres south of Kadugli in preparation for advancing on the city.
RSF forces have already taken control of key towns in West Kordofan, including Babanusa and the Heglig oil area.
A reliable source told Al-Saihah newspaper that thousands of civilians fled Kadugli under extremely difficult humanitarian conditions after what the source described as their “release” from General al-Burhan’s army (SAF), which had prevented civilians from leaving the city despite severe shortages of food and water.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has also completed its withdrawal from Kadugli, relocating personnel and equipment that had been stationed in the city since 2011 to Abyei, on the border between Sudan and South Sudan.
Civilian pressure
More than two weeks ago, community groups called for the withdrawal of all armed forces from Kadugli to avoid urban combat, warning that the city is now one of only three major towns in the Kordofan region where the SAF still maintains a presence.
The Nuba Mountains Forces Alliance urged all parties to demilitarise the area to avert what it described as a looming catastrophe.
The alliance said it held consultations with political and civil leaders, traditional authorities inside and outside Sudan, and senior officers from different armed formations, including the SAF and SPLM-N.
It said a memorandum was sent to SAF chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, SPLM-N leader Abdelaziz al-Hilu, RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti), the Tasis alliance, the civilian coalition “Sumoud,” and other influential political actors.
Meanwhile, military personnel have reportedly evacuated their families from Kadugli and Dilling to areas under SPLM-N control, amid growing calls for a humanitarian truce to allow civilians to leave both cities.
Mass displacement, humanitarian fears
Sawsan Jumaa, a leading figure in the Nuba Mountains civil alliance, described the situation in South Kordofan as militarily and humanitarianly “extremely complex,” citing a mass flight of former National Congress Party figures, state employees, and international organisation staff from Kadugli and Dilling.
She said large waves of displaced people are heading toward SPLM-N-controlled areas under Abdelaziz Adam al-Hilu, deputy head of the Tasis alliance.
In remarks to Radio Dabanga, Jumaa highlighted what she called a striking paradox: senior SAF officers and their supporters have sent their children and families to SPLM-N-held areas in search of safety.
“This shows the depth of the crisis,” she said. “The SPLM-N is receiving everyone without political or regional discrimination, as people of one area, reflecting social cohesion despite the armed conflict.”
Jumaa warned of an unfolding humanitarian disaster, saying there are no official figures for the displaced. She noted that the most recent wave of displacement to SPLM-N areas, including Brono and Al-Buram, numbered around 13,000 people.
She said civilians are fleeing on foot for up to three days, or using animals and small trucks, in the complete absence of humanitarian assistance.
The Nuba Mountains civil alliance issued an urgent appeal to the international community to intervene by providing emergency aid and transportation for the displaced. Jumaa also called for an immediate humanitarian truce to evacuate civilians trapped by ongoing military escalation that threatens the lives of thousands across South Kordofan.
