RSF attacks Sudan’s El Nahud, residents report killings, looting
May 1, 2025 (EL NAHUD) – Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) carried out arrests and were accused of assassinations and widespread looting in the West Kordofan city of El Nahud on Thursday after launching a major offensive, residents and local groups said.
The Sudanese army (SAF) repelled attacks on its main base east of the city after withdrawing from central areas captured by the RSF, including the local government headquarters and main market, witnesses said.
El Nahud is strategically important due to its location linking Sudan’s Kordofan states with the Darfur region. It had served as the temporary administrative capital for West Kordofan state authorities after the RSF captured the main state capital, El Fula, last year and had remained under SAF control until Thursday’s attack.
The city is also a central commercial hub in western Sudan and the seat of the Hamar tribal administration. The region is known for significant peanut and gum arabic production, and El Nahud hosts one of the country’s largest livestock markets.
A statement from the El Nahud Resistance Committees, cited by the Sudan Tribune news site, accused the RSF of committing “horrific violations” since early morning, including storming homes, terrorizing civilians and carrying out “cold-blooded murders”.
The committee described the events as a “fully-fledged crime” and held the RSF “fully responsible for the lives lost”. The statement urged residents to reject the violence and document abuses.
Eyewitnesses told Sudan Tribune that RSF fighters stormed and looted the headquarters of Abdelqader Monem Mansour, the Nazir or paramount chief of the Hamar tribe, destroying furniture.
They also reported looting at the main market, government buildings, a Reserve Forces base, banks, including the Bank of Khartoum, and civilian homes and vehicles. Pro-RSF platforms showed videos of fighters controlling the central prison after releasing inmates.
Eyewitnesses also saw RSF convoys loaded with looted goods leaving towards Wad Banda near North Darfur, while others headed for El Fula.
The army retained control of the eastern part of El Nahud, including its main 18th Infantry Brigade base in the Jebel Haidoub area, the local sources said, adding that fighting was ongoing with explosions heard and smoke seen rising.
Late on Thursday evening, Sudanese Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim, who also leads the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), told Al Jazeera TV that fighters referred to as “the Janjaweed” had been expelled from the city of El Nahud in West Kordofan state.
Social media activists reported that the RSF assassinated Major Ahmed Abdallah, the local head of court police, and his wife. Sudan Tribune could not immediately verify the report amid poor communications in the area.
The attack followed the arrival of significant RSF reinforcements near El Nahud about two weeks ago, led by commander Ali Rizqallah, known as “Al-Savanna”. The force began shelling the city on Wednesday evening before launching the ground offensive at dawn on Thursday, according to reports.