Sudan’s military says it took full control of Greater Khartoum region that includes the capital

CAIRO (AP) — Sudan’s military on Tuesday said it took full control of the Greater Khartoum region after a long-running battle against remnants of a paramilitary group in the region’s west and south.

The development was the latest victory for the military in its more than two years of fighting against the Rapid Support Forces, a civil war that has pushed parts of the country into famine.

Brig. Gen. Nabil Abdullah, a spokesman for the Sudanese military, said forces retook the Greater Khartoum region, which include the capital city of Khartoum and its sister cities of Omdurman and Khartoum North, or Bahri.

“Khartoum state is completely free of rebels,” he declared in a video statement.

Earlier, Abdullah said troops battled RSF fighters in the western and southern areas of Omdurman as part of a large-scale operation to kick the paramilitaries out of their pockets there.

There was no immediate comment from the RSF.

Sudan plunged into civil war on April 15, 2023, when simmering tensions between the military and the RSF exploded into open warfare in Khartoum and other parts of the country. The war has killed at least 24,000 people, though the number is likely far higher.

The war has driven about 13 million people from their homes, including 4 million who crossed into neighboring countries. Parts of Sudan have been pushed into famine.

The fighting has been marked by atrocities including mass rape and ethnically motivated killings that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, especially in Darfur, according to the U.N. and international rights groups.