Sudanese Army Base in Babanusa Overrun After Protracted Siege
SAF suffers heavy losses in West Kordofan town after refusing truce
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Monday seized control of the headquarters of the Sudanese Armed Forces’ 22nd Infantry Division in the town of Babanusa, West Kordofan State, after a two-year siege, dealing the military another major reversal, only weeks after the fall of El Fasher.
Several factors contributed to SAF’s defeat, including attrition, RSF’s manpower advantage in the area, and the inability of the military to continue resupplying the base by air. Last month, the RSF shot down of an IL-76 cargo plane near Babanusa, killing the crew.
Following the capture of Babanusa, the 22nd Division is reduced to just one surviving brigade, positioned at the Heglig oilfield in the southeastern corner of West Kordofan, along the border with South Sudan. Fighting at this location could damage Chinese economic interests; the RSF thus far has largely refrained from attacking Heglig, apart from limited drone strikes.
The takeover of Babanusa comes just days after Sudan’s army chief, General Abdelfattah al-Burhan, rejected a US-backed ceasefire proposal and accused Washington of bias. Following that rejection, the RSF announced a unilateral ceasefire, which it has continued to accuse the army of violating even as its own military operations persisted across multiple fronts.
Fighting to capture Babanusa intensified last month following the fall of El Fasher. The RSF’s victory there freed up thousands of fighters and large quantities of ammunition for use on other fronts. Over the past two days, the paramilitary mounted repeated daily assaults on the 22nd Division.
Sudanese military defenses outside the division’s perimeter came under sustained pressure, with the RSF launching two major attacks on Sunday and two more on Monday before overrunning the base in the afternoon.
Videos reviewed and geolocated by Sudan War Monitor showed RSF units present inside the former divisional headquarters. One video shows armed men gathered at the main entrance of the division firing into the air, with no visible signs of active fighting at the time of recording.
A second video, filmed by a group of soldiers who identify the date as December 1, 2025, shows fighters inside the now former 89th Brigade headquarters, just north of the 22nd Division’s headquarters buildings and outer perimeter, confirming the RSF’s physical control of the site. Additional videos show RSF troops bragging and celebrating amid bodies of SAF troops who died while defending the base or attempting to escape from it.
Babanusa is the largest town in West Kordofan after the state capital, El Fula. It has long served as a strategic military and transport hub linking Sudan to the oil-producing belt near the border with South Sudan’s Unity State.
Most of the civilian population abandoned Babunusa over the past two years. Only a small number of families linked to senior officers, soldiers, and members of local resistance committees remained inside the garrison area. Satellite images show heavy damage from shelling, ground combat, and fires throughout the city.
At the outbreak of the war, the 22nd Infantry Division commanded a network of brigades across West Kordofan, including the 91st Brigade in El Fula, the 18th Brigade in An-Nahud, the 89th Brigade in Muglad, the 92nd Brigade in El-Meiram, and units from the 90th Brigade in Belila near the Heglig oilfields.
The 89th Brigade withdrew from Muglad in early 2024 and regrouped at the Babanusa headquarters. With the fall of the division, the RSF now controls all of West Kordofan with the sole exception of Heglig.
The division’s collapse crowns a long process of depletion that began in the first few months of the war, driven by defections, battlefield attrition, and chronic logistical shortages. A major blow came at the Baleela oilfield in late 2023, where RSF fighters destroyed an entire brigade, killed prisoners of war, and killed the division’s deputy commander, Brigadier General Khaled al-Fadil.
West Kordofan is the homeland of the Misseriya Arab tribe, whose leaders have largely aligned with the RSF.
RSF statement on the capture of Babanusa
Following the takeover of 22nd Division, the RSF issued two separate statements on the fighting. In its English-language statement, the paramilitary group said its positions in Babanusa had come under attack by the Sudanese military and that it had acted in “legitimate self-defense,” without explicitly confirming the capture of the town.
“Earlier this Monday morning, our forces were subjected to a treacherous attack by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) that operates under the so-called terrorist Islamic Movement and its affiliated militias in the city of Babanousa, West Kordofan State. Our forces had no option but to exercise their legitimate right to self-defense and to repel the aggression.”
“As we reiterate our firm commitment to the humanitarian truce declared by us, we affirm to local and international public opinion that the SAF that operates under the so-called terrorist Islamic Movement has exploited this commitment to continue its repeated attacks on a number of cities and villages, resulting in the killing and injury of hundreds of innocent civilians. In addition to continuing to mobilize its militias to continue fighting, which endangers the lives of innocent civilian and negatively affects the flow of humanitarian aid.
“We call upon the Quad countries and regional and international organizations to condemn the repeated attacks by the SAF operates under the so-called terrorist Islamic Movement, the latest of which was the attack on the area of (Kumo) in South Kordofan that led to the killing of more than 46 students and the injury of dozens. We also reaffirm that the right to self-defense and the defense of civilians is a legitimate right guaranteed by all international laws,” the English version of the same statement reads.
In the second statement issued in Arabic and translated by Sudan War Monitor, the RSF declared the “liberation” of both the 22nd Infantry Division and the city of Babanusa in full. The RSF claimed the capture came after what it described as repeated violations of the humanitarian truce by the Sudanese army.
The statement said the takeover followed what it described as an early-morning surprise attack by army forces on RSF positions inside Babanusa, despite the paramilitary’s declared commitment to the truce announced after the military leadership rejected a US-backed ceasefire proposal.
It accused the army of exploiting the truce to reorganize, mobilize allied militias, and continue attacks on civilian areas, describing the assault as the “eighth violation” of the ceasefire in recent days.
“In a new and blatant violation of the humanitarian truce called for by the Quartet countries (the United States of America, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Arab Republic of Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates), the forces of the Muslim Brotherhood terrorist movement’s army, backed by formations with extremist affiliations, carried out a surprise attack at dawn on Monday on the positions of the Tasis Forces in the city of Babanusa—despite our full commitment to the humanitarian truce and the ceasefire from its very first moment.”
“This attack constitutes the eighth violation of the truce in recent days and clearly reflects the army’s disregard for any humanitarian or legal obligations, as well as its repeated use of hostile operations at timings aimed at disrupting peace efforts and preventing the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians.”
“Despite this escalation and the repeated assaults on Babanusa, the response was an overwhelming victory, as the Tasis Forces successfully repelled the attack in full and foiled it before carrying out a precise military operation that led to the liberation of the 22nd Division and the city of Babanusa in its entirety, and to the neutralization of military threats that had targeted civilians in several areas.”
“The operation resulted in heavy losses in lives and equipment among the attacking forces, the destruction of heavy machinery, and the seizure of advanced military equipment from regional states that had been used to obstruct stabilization efforts and expand the cycle of violence.”
“The liberation of Babanusa represents a pivotal milestone in confronting extremist groups that have infiltrated the structure of the Sudanese army and demonstrates the ability of the Tasis Forces to protect civilians and prevent the country from sliding into further chaos and division.”
“The Tasis Forces reaffirm their full adherence to the humanitarian truce and their commitment to protecting civilians and ensuring the flow of aid to them, while stressing that legitimate self-defense is a right guaranteed under international law, especially in light of the repeated violations of the truce carried out by the terrorist Muslim Brotherhood movement’s army and its militias.”
“The Tasis Forces also renew their readiness to engage in any serious path toward a just and lasting peace that fulfills the aspirations of the Sudanese people for a safe and stable state, ends the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood movement that controls the joints of the Sudanese army, and restores to Sudanese citizens their right to build their future on civil and national foundations.”
Videos
Warning: The following material contains graphic images. Viewer discretion is strongly advised.
In this video, RSF soldiers are seen celebrating outside the entrance of the 89th Brigade headquarters north of the division headquarters here: 11°19’24.01”N 27°48’0.12”E.
In this video, RSF soldiers are seen entering the Babanusa military hospital located inside the division headquarters here: 11°18’57.71”N 27°47’53.40”E.
In this video, RSF soldiers are seen celebrating from the outer entrance of the division headquarters, here: 11°19’16.23”N 27°47’58.29”E.
In this video, RSF soldiers film slain Sudanese military soldiers inside bunkers and trenches.
In this video, RSF fighters are seen at the eastern entrance of the 22nd infantry division here: 11°19’16.23”N 27°47’58.34”E.
RSF soldier films war dead, including several apparent child soldiers employed by SAF. He says the dead are all SAF, not civilians.