Sudan army pushes to oust RSF from capital outskirts

KHARTOUM — Clashes erupted on Tuesday in the outskirts of Sudan's capital as the army launched a "large-scale" offensive to dislodge the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces from its last positions in the area.

Explosions were heard in eastern Omdurman, an AFP correspondent reported, where the RSF still hold some positions after losing control of the capital, Khartoum.

The army said it began the push on Monday to retake the holdouts, where health authorities reported a deadly cholera outbreak.

"We are pressing a large-scale operation and we are close to clearing the whole of Khartoum state from the dirty thugs," said army spokesman Nabil Abdallah.

The war, which began in April 2023, pits the military, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, against the RSF, commanded by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.

The latest violence comes as both sides seek to install rival governments.

On Monday, Burhan named former UN official Kamil Idris as prime minister, in what analysts see as an attempt to present a functioning civilian-led administration amid the ongoing war.

The African Union welcomed the appointment, calling it "a step toward inclusive governance" and expressing hope the move would "restore constitutional order and democratic governance".

Burhan also appointed two women as members of the ruling Transitional Sovereignty Council and stripped the body of powers to oversee the cabinet.

The moves were aimed at showing progress and appealing to the African Union after Sudan's membership was suspended in 2021, said analyst Kholood Khair.

Burhan wants to "maintain power but share liability... because everything is now blamed on him", as he seeks to consolidate control as he was still reeling from attacks on his wartime capital, Port Sudan, Khair said.

In April, the RSF said it would form its own government in territory under its control, though analysts say it is unlikely to win international backing.

 'Lives at risk' 

After a major battlefield victory in March, when the army recaptured most of Khartoum, the RSF this month launched deep attacks into army-held territory.

Long-range drone strikes blamed on the paramilitaries have targeted key infrastructure in army-held northeastern Sudan, including the wartime capital Port Sudan and power stations supplying electricity to millions.

Relegated to their last major bases in Salha, south of Omdurman, and Ombada to the west, the RSF has launched attacks across Khartoum, including drone strikes on three power stations that knocked out electricity in the capital last week.

Medical charity Doctors Withour Borders [MSF] reported the local water network had been forced out of service, risking the spread of cholera in the city as residents "will turn to different water sources".

Health ministry officials reported Tuesday 51 people have died from more than 2,300 cases reported in the past three weeks,  90 per cent of them in Khartoum state.

MSF on Sunday said the electricity blackout had disrupted healthcare at the city's major hospitals, amid fears of heightened civilian suffering.

"The recurrent attacks on critical infrastructure place civilian lives at risk, worsen the humanitarian crisis, and undermine basic human rights," UN human rights expert Radhouane Nouicer warned on Monday.

Since it began in April 2023, has killed tens of thousands, uprooted 13 million and created the world's largest hunger and displacement crises.

It has also effectively carved Africa's third-largest country in two, with the army holding the centre, north and east while the RSF controls nearly all of the vast western region of Darfur and, with its allies, parts of the south.