Editor’s Note: This post is out of date. For a more recent map update, click here:
Sudan is currently in the seventh month of a major new war between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF)—both elements of the former military regime, which toppled a civilian government in 2021 before leading the country down the path to war.
SAF (red) control most of the Nile Valley and the country’s eastern provinces and ports. RSF (yellow) control most of the western Darfur region, most of the capital region, and parts of North and West Kordofan.
Former rebels who fought both the RSF and SAF in Darfur have remained neutral so far, including the two largest Sudan Liberation Army factions (SLA). One of these is led by Minni Minawi, who signed a peace agreement with Sudan’s government in 2020 and became governor of Greater Darfur. His forces are concentrated mostly in North Darfur (light green). The other SLA faction is led by Abdelwahid al-Nur, whose troops control the central mountainous region of Darfur, Jebel Marra (dark green).
Another significant armed group is the SPLM-North, a long-time rebel group that controls large parts of the Nuba Mountains and some of Blue Nile State (dark green), along the country’s southern border with South Sudan.
In the past three months, since my last map update, RSF have gained the upper hand in large parts of western Sudan. Significant territorial changes since then include RSF consolidating control over large parts of Khartoum State, capturing more territory in North Kordofan, including Umm Ruwaba, as well as garrisons in Zalingei and Nyala.
The map is approximate anddoesn’t necessarily capture all the complexities of the situation. For example, RSF forces operate throughout North Darfur, including in areas marked as controlled by SLA-Minawi. Likewise, the latter are able to move freely through RSF-controlled parts of Darfur and Kordofan, and have done so to escort humanitarian and commercial convoys from Kosti to El Fasher.
This is a guest post by Thomas van Linge, a freelance journalist and researcher who previously mapped conflicts in Syria, Ethiopia, and Myanmar.
You can support his work here.
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