Thousands flee fighting in Sudan’s West Kordofan, U.N. agency says

June 29, 2025 (BABANUSA) – Thousands of families have fled a village in Sudan’s West Kordofan state following clashes between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the U.N. migration agency said on Sunday.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said in a statement that an estimated 3,200 families fled the village of El Gantoor, about 35 km (22 miles) northwest of Babanusa, on Friday.

The displaced have moved to various areas in the nearby Al-Du’ayn locality, the IOM said, describing the situation in the region as “tense and rapidly changing.”

The displacement follows a multi-day RSF assault on the army-controlled town of Babanusa that began on June 16. The army stated it repelled the attack, forcing RSF fighters to pull back into surrounding villages.

The RSF controls most of West Kordofan, including its capital Al-Fulah, while the army holds Babanusa and some oil fields in the Heglig area.

Separately, the IOM reported that 121 families were displaced from the village of Lamina in the neighbouring North Kordofan state due to “worsening insecurity.”

That displacement followed an RSF attack on June 24 on villages south of El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan. The RSF has been attempting to tighten its encirclement of El-Obeid, a key army stronghold, after capturing nearby towns in May.