Sudanese Masses Remain Overshadowed as the RSF Militias Lose Ground to the Armed Forces

The Rapid Support Forces have suffered defeats in North Kordofan while imperialist surrogates fuel the war to benefit Washington

By Abayomi Azikiwe,

Editor, Pan-African News Wire

Wednesday August 5, 2026

Geopolitical Review

Numerous reports emanating from the Republic of Sudan indicate that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the militia grouping which is said to be backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has been forced out of areas in North Kordofan state.

In recent weeks the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) headed by General Abdel-Fattah El-Burhan has appealed to the RSF fighters to lay down their arms and surrender. 

During late July, General El-Burhan, who also heads the Sovereign Council, visited recaptured areas in North Kordofan. These developments could represent a critical turning point in the war between the SAF and RSF which erupted in April 2023. 

The Sudan Dabanga radio network reported on the visit of El-Burhan to several towns in North Kordofan. General El-Burhan made an appearance in North Kordofan to emphasize to his soldiers that they are winning the war against the RSF.

Over the last year as the humanitarian situation in Sudan worsened, the SAF has taken territory previously controlled by the RSF militias. RSF groups had occupied the capital of Khartoum prior to having to flee in the face of the SAF onslaught.

According to Radio Dabanga:

“Travelling by military helicopter, El Burhan inspected frontline troops alongside Darfur Governor Minni Arko Minnawi, North Kordofan Governor Abdelkhaliq Abdelatif, and Sudan Shield Forces commander Abu Agla Keikil, according to the Sovereignty Council. The visit comes as fierce fighting continues across North Kordofan, where both sides are battling for control of the strategic Omdurman–El Obeid Export Road. Military analyst Brig Gen Walid Ezzeldin told Radio Dabanga that the recent advances are significant because they strengthen the SAF’s control of the Export Road, one of Sudan’s most important military and logistical corridors. He said the road is vital for moving troops, ammunition, fuel and supplies towards Kordofan and Darfur, while Bara’s location on the Omdurman–El Obeid route makes it a strategic objective for both the SAF and the RSF.” (https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/el-burhan-visits-newly-captured-north-kordofan-towns)

The RSF has been supported by the UAE, one of the closest allies of the United States and other allied countries in Europe. Although the UAE representatives at the United Nations General Assembly have denied supporting the RSF, other sources reveal that this is indeed the reality of the situation in Sudan. 

Sudan is Wealthy in Resources, Yet the People are Impoverished

This large African state of more than 53 million people has tremendous potential based upon its strategic location which encompasses the Horn of Africa as well as bordering Northern and Central regions of the continent. At the same time, the country has oil and other important natural resources which are important to the world economic system. 

Sudan is a leading producer of gold with mines in the Red Sea Hills, the Nuba Mountains and in the Darfur region. Additional resources include crude oil said to be 1.25 billion barrels and natural gas estimated at nearly 3 trillion cubic feet near border regions. 

Other resources in Sudan consist of various metals such as copper, iron ore, chrome, uranium and rare earth elements located in Darfur, Kordofan and the Red Sea region. Agricultural potential is vast with the presence of arable land around the Nile Rivers which supports the cultivation of cotton, sorghum, peanuts and wheat. There are specialty crops as well such as sesame seeds and gum Arabic. 

Gold at present is the largest export from Sudan which is significant in light of the presence of oil and natural gas in abundance. The partition of Sudan in 2011 which created Africa’s most recent state, the Republic of South Sudan, weakened both countries. This important development has impeded oil production and export over the last 15 years. Internal problems within both North and South Sudan have hampered the capacity for the extraction and export of oil. Compounding the negative impact of the partitioning of what was once the continent’s largest geographic nation-state, is the war between the two largest and best equipped military factions, the SAF and RSF.

The dominance of gold is clearly related to the involvement of the UAE in the fratricidal war taking place over the last three years. The UAE along with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which supports the SAF under the leadership of General El-Burhan, has been blamed by many within the international community for fueling the intra-military war.

An article published on August 4 on the role of gold mining and trading in Sudan says of the present situation:

“The UAE received more than $US100 million worth of gold bullion that was stolen by paramilitary forces from the Sudanese central bank and its state refinery, according to the Financial Times. Sudan’s civil war has fueled the flow of gold — both legal and illegal — between the two countries; an Emirati official said the trade had reached just over $1 billion in 2025. Nearly $30 billion of undeclared artisanal gold is exported from Africa to Dubai each year, according to the charity Swissaid. Sudan’s gold is fueling one of the world’s most brutal civil wars: militias, accused of ethnic cleansing and genocide against non-Arab communities, now use advanced drones, air defense systems and fleets of armored personnel carriers thanks to the UAE.” (https://www.semafor.com/article/08/04/2026/uae-procured-100m-in-stolen-gold-from-sudan-investigation-finds)

Consequently, there is much at stake over who will control the natural resources of the Republic of Sudan. Irrespective of the devastating situation of the workers, farmers and youth of Sudan, external elements which are aligned with Washington, Wall Street and NATO are profiting from the deaths and destruction.

Humanitarian Situation Further Deteriorates in Sudan

The mass democratic movement which erupted in Sudan during late 2018 and early 2019 has been overshadowed by the internecine war taking place between the military factions. Various organizations came to the fore seeking to transform the country from being dominated by the military forces to a society and state controlled by the masses of the people.

Yet both wings of the military, whether it was the SAF or the RSF, proved to be opposed to the creation of a revolutionary democratic state inside the country. The military in Sudan has played a dominant role within the political apparatus as well as the national economy. 

The military factions backed by imperialist-allied powers in West Asia are facilitating the worsening crisis as exemplified in the large-scale deaths, injuries and displacement inside Sudan as well as in neighboring states such as South Sudan, Chad and Egypt. Millions are desperately in need of food, medicines, clean water and shelter from hostile military elements.

A report on the ongoing fighting published by the US Senate ahead of a briefing to the Foreign Relations Committee on the situation, focuses on the continuing hunger, deprivation and insecurity:

“Recent military developments have intensified the conflict's humanitarian toll. The Sudanese Armed Forces and allied forces recaptured key cities in North Kordofan on July 25, including Bara, Al-Baraka and Um Sayala. Hours after the Sudanese Armed Forces regained control of the highway connecting El Obeid to Khartoum on July 27, drone strikes attributed to the Rapid Support Forces hit El Obeid. Two days later, retreating Rapid Support Forces troops launched retaliatory attacks on civilians in multiple North Kordofan communities, including Um Badr, Sodari, Abu Zaima and Hamrat al-Sheikh. The humanitarian situation has continued to deteriorate. On July 3, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights warned the conflict ‘threatens to spiral further,’ citing ‘relentless’ drone attacks on El Obeid by paramilitary forces. Civilians have endured ‘siege-like conditions for 18 months.’ A Sudan researcher described the country as a ‘convergence of humanitarian collapse,’ with armed conflict, mass displacement, famine, epidemic disease and economic collapse reinforcing one another. Al Jazeera reported that renewed fighting and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz have slowed fertilizer shipments, worsening food insecurity in Sudan.” (https://legis1.com/news/sudan-humanitarian-crisis-senate-panel-will)

Although the Senate has issued this report it cannot distract from the ongoing role of the Congress in funding the war against Iran. The US war on Iran is designed to maintain imperialist hegemony through the continuing existence of the occupation of Palestine by settler-colonialism. The unprovoked war launched by Israel and the US is contributing immensely to the humanitarian crisis in Sudan and other states and geopolitical regions in the world. 

The withdrawal of US support for the Persian Gulf Arab monarchies would go a long way in democratizing West Asia and the Horn of Africa. These non-democratic outposts for imperialism serve as military and economic bases for Washington, Wall Street and their allies within Europe. 

However, the response by the Islamic Republic of Iran and its partners such as the resistance forces in Yemen and other regional states has resulted in the upending the geostrategic status quo. Therefore, antiwar and social justice movements in the imperialist states must demand the immediate halt to the war funding against Iran along with the Israeli regime in order to express maximum solidarity with the progressive and national liberation forces in West Asia and the Horn of Africa.