RSF says it took control of Sudan’s strategic border town Kurmuk
August 13, 2026 (KURMUK) – The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said on Thursday they had taken control of the strategic town of Kurmuk in Sudan’s Blue Nile region following heavy clashes with the Sudanese army.
The Sudanese army had recaptured Kurmuk on July 8 after the RSF first seized it in March during a major assault that the Sudanese government alleged was backed by neighbouring Ethiopia.
Government sources said at the time that Ethiopian authorities provided training camps for RSF fighters and set up landing strips for drones used to target positions inside Sudan.
The capture of Kurmuk comes two days after a broad RSF offensive in the Blue Nile region that led to the capture of Qaysan, another key town along the border with Ethiopia.
An RSF spokesperson said in a statement that its forces had liberated Kurmuk, located about 136 km (85 miles) from Ed Damazin, adding that fighters seized large quantities of weapons and ammunition while forcing army troops to flee.
Military sources told Sudan Tribune that the army abandoned its defensive positions in the city early on Thursday following intense long-range drone strikes launched from inside Ethiopian territory that hit army fortifications.
Local authorities in Kurmuk said in a statement that the town had been subjected to heavy attacks over the past three days by long-range and loitering drones, alongside artillery fire from across the border.
The statement added that the armed forces continued to defend the city, its public institutions, and civilian property.
Kurmuk holds high strategic value as a major border crossing with Ethiopia and a vital supply route in the southeastern region.
During the decades-long civil war between the Sudanese army and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) under the late John Garang, the town frequently changed hands, forcing thousands of residents to flee to neighbouring Ethiopia, South Sudan, or Ed Damazin, the capital of Blue Nile State.