Sudan’s regular army has regained control of the southeastern Blue Nile town of Khor Hassan, wresting it from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) after weeks of intensified fighting near the Ethiopian border.
Strategic gain in Blue Nile
In a statement on Friday, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) said its troops “successfully captured” Khor Hassan from the RSF, describing the operation as a well‑planned offensive that inflicted heavy losses on RSF personnel and equipment. The town lies in the rugged, mineral‑rich south of Blue Nile state, an area that has become a key battleground in Sudan’s more than three‑year civil war.
Sources report that the capture of Khor Hassan is part of the army’s broader plan to reassert control over the nearby border‑town of Kurmuk, which straddles a vital trade route into Ethiopia and sits close to the Al‑Roseires Dam hydroelectric complex. Control over this axis carries both economic and military weight, including access to electricity infrastructure and cross‑border commercial flows.
RSF and allies lose ground
The RSF, backed by the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–North (SPLM‑N), had seized Khor Hassan in March, deepening their footprint in Blue Nile and effectively dividing the region’s territory between the army and allied militias. Local analysts say the latest army gains suggest a tactical reversal of RSF momentum in the south, even as the wider conflict remains highly fluid.
Sudanese army spokesmen told reporters that the 4th Infantry Division, supported by allied units, drove RSF and SPLM‑N fighters from Khor Hassan after days of heavy clashes, forcing the remaining forces to retreat towards the border hinterlands. The SAF claimed that the operation disrupted RSF supply lines and weakened the paramilitary’s hold on key garrison and border zones, though the RSF has yet to issue a detailed counter‑account.
Humanitarian and economic implications
The intensified fighting in Blue Nile has repeatedly displaced civilians and snarled cross‑border trade routes that link Sudan’s eastern markets to Ethiopia’s Benishangul‑Gumuz and Gambella regions. Aid agencies in the region warn that any shift in control around Khor Hassan and Kurmuk will place renewed pressure on already overstretched humanitarian corridors and local markets.
For Ethiopia, the changing balance of power near its northwestern frontier raises questions about the security of border crossings used for fuel, grain, and manufactured goods, even as Addis Ababa continues to deny direct support for either side in the Sudan war. Regional diplomats note that the struggle for Blue Nile could influence longer‑term trade and energy‑infrastructure arrangements on the eastern side of the Nile basin.
