Sudan’s devastating civil war has taken another grim turn. The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) announced on October 26 that it had captured the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) Sixth Infantry Division headquarters in Al-Fashir, the capital of North Darfur. If confirmed, the development would mark the collapse of the national army’s final stronghold in Darfur, a region already ravaged by more than two years of relentless fighting, sieges, and civilian massacres.

The RSF, led by General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo-known as Hemedti-hailed the victory as a “historic milestone,” claiming it had achieved full control of the Al-Fashir command after what it described as “heroic battles marked by precise operations and strategic sieges.”

“The liberation of Al-Fashir represents a pivotal milestone in the battles waged by our valiant forces,” an RSF spokesperson said in a statement. “It outlines the contours of a new state that all Sudanese will participate in building.”

For more than a year, Al-Fashir has stood as the last bastion of Sudan’s national army in Darfur, a region that has already witnessed some of the worst atrocities of the 21st century. The fall of the Sixth Infantry Division would effectively hand over control of all five Darfur states to the RSF, consolidating the militia’s dominance across western Sudan.

The RSF, originally formed out of the notorious Janjaweed militias accused of ethnic cleansing during the early 2000s Darfur conflict, has steadily expanded its control since fighting broke out with the national army in April 2023. What began as a power struggle between General Hemedti and army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan for control of Sudan’s future has now transformed into a full-scale war, displacing millions and destroying the remnants of Sudan’s........

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