The deputy commander of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces urged his fighters on Saturday to push deeper into SAF junta-held territory, setting their sights on the key cities of Al-Obeid and Kosti and ultimately the Red Sea port of Port Sudan.
In a video address circulated on pro-RSF social media channels, Lt. Gen. Abdul Rahim Dagalo said the RSF is “not fighting alone,” saying that allied rebel groups are now operating under the Sudan’s Founding Alliance against General al-Burhan’s army (SAF).
Dagalo named factions loyal to Abdel-Aziz al-Hilu and al-Hadi Idris as already engaged alongside the RSF, and said additional fighters led by al-Taher Hajar and Sulaiman Sandal were “on their way to the front.” None of the groups immediately confirmed his account, and the claims could not be independently verified.
He congratulated RSF units for what he called “major victories” in the Kordofan region, asserting they had routed forces loyal to SAF chief Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan.
Dagalo also accused an Iran-linked militia he described as the “Baraa Corps” of fighting on the SAF’s side.
“Advance along every axis toward your strategic objectives,” Dagalo told his troops, without providing a timeline.
The RSF and General al-Burhan’s SAF have been locked in a brutal power struggle since April 2023, a conflict that has devastated Khartoum, driven millions from their homes and triggered warnings of famine. Port Sudan, controlled by the SAF, now serves as the junta’s administrative hub and the main entry point for foreign aid.
Negotiations to end the war have repeatedly collapsed, and each side has sought fresh alliances in a bid to break the stalemate. Analysts say any RSF drive eastward would sharply escalate fighting and threaten the country’s last functioning port.