The Sudanese army has recaptured the presidential palace in the capital, Khartoum, in a highly symbolic battlefield victory over the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the country’s catastrophic civil war.
Sudanese Army Recaptures Presidential Palace
The Sudanese army has recaptured the presidential palace in the capital, Khartoum, in a highly symbolic battlefield victory over the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the country’s catastrophic civil war. An officer wearing a captain’s epaulettes announced the takeover of the palace in a video and confirmed that troops were inside the compound. Sudan’s information minister, Khaled al-Aiser, said in a social media post that the military had retaken the palace.
He said, The palace is back, and the journey continues until victory is complete. On the other hand, the RSF said it is fighting back and claims to have launched an attack on the palace. The two-year civil war has caused the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, according to the UN. The RSF also still controls large parts of the country, including much of the West.
The United Nations has described the situation in the country as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. More than 12 million people have been forced to flee their homes and millions face acute food shortages, with parts of the country driven into famine. The RSF is working to set up a parallel government in areas it controls, gathering allied groups to sign a political charter and constitution last month in Nairobi.
Khartoum is one of the places expected to reach famine conditions soon, having been subject to widespread looting from RSF soldiers and restrictions on aid by the Sudanese government. So a change of power in the city could make a big difference to humanitarian conditions there. Both sides have been accused of obstructing emergency aid, in effect using it as a weapon of war, according to UN officials. And both have been accused of war crimes, although critics have singled out the RSF for charges of mass rape and genocide.
Where is Sudan?
Sudan is in north-east Africa and is one of the largest countries on the continent, covering 1.9 million sq km. The population of Sudan is predominantly Muslim, and the country’s official languages are Arabic and English. Even before the war started, Sudan was one the poorest countries in the world. Its 46 million people were in 2022 living on an average annual income of $750 (£600) a head. The conflict has made things much worse. Last year, Sudan’s finance minister said state revenues had shrunk by 80%.
