Khartoum, Jan 25 (IANS): The Sudanese government announced that its armed forces had achieved major victories in the capital Khartoum, amid reports of breaking the siege on the army's General Command headquarters.
"The victories of our strong army in Khartoum Bahri, El Fasher, Kordofan, and several battlefronts, represent a pivotal moment in our journey toward restoring security and stability to our beloved country," government spokesperson Khalid Ali Aleisir said in a statement on Friday.
He reaffirmed the army's commitment to continue fighting until all militias, rebels, mercenaries, and their internal and external supporters are eliminated, Xinhua news agency reported.
A military source told Xinhua that the army successfully broke the siege imposed by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on the General Command headquarters in Khartoum. Video footage released by Sudanese army soldiers showed scenes from the vicinity of the headquarters, which had been under RSF siege since mid-April 2023.
The source added that army units also managed on Friday to lift the siege on the Signal Corps south of Bahri city, north of the capital Khartoum after days of fierce fighting with the RSF.
Sudan has been gripped by a devastating conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF since mid-April 2023, which claimed around 27,000 lives and displaced nearly 15 million people, either inside or outside Sudan, according to the latest estimates by international organisations.
In western Sudan, the fighting in El Fasher, the capital city of North Darfur State, has intensified.
The Joint Force, which includes the SAF and allied armed groups, announced in a statement on Friday that they had repelled a major attack by the RSF on El Fasher from several directions.
Sudan's Darfur region governor Minni Arko Minnawi confirmed in a statement on Friday that the armed forces and popular resistance "have taught the militias a lesson, causing them to retreat in disappointment."
Since May 10, 2024, the RSF has imposed a siege on El Fasher, while the Sudanese army continued to defend the city, which remains under its control.