The Kordofan region sits between Darfur and the Khartoum–Riverine heartland and is emerging as the latest arena in the two-year war between Sudan’s army and the UAE-backed Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which began in April 2023.

Just over a week after the RSF overran El-Fasher, the former army stronghold in Darfur, the group has set up a rival administration there, challenging the pro-army government in Port Sudan.

War Shifts Toward Kordofan

UN migration data indicate that an estimated 36,825 people fled five localities in North Kordofan between 26 and 31 October, following the RSF capture of El-Fasher and eastward movements of both RSF and army units.

Residents report heavy concentrations of vehicles and weapons across towns and villages as the two forces jockey for control of central Sudan’s road and air links.

Tens of Thousands Displaced Again

Many of those fleeing Kordofan are moving toward Tawila, a town in Darfur that is already hosting about 652,000 displaced people and now faces another large influx.

Aid workers warn that water, shelter and health services in Tawila and surrounding camps were overstretched even before the latest 36,000 arrivals from the east.

El-Obeid and Bara Under Pressure

The army and the RSF are vying for El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, which serves as a key logistics and command hub linking Darfur to Khartoum and includes an airport.

The RSF says it has seized Bara, a city north of El-Obeid, and circulated a video in which one fighter declares: “Today, all our forces have converged on the Bara front here,” while warning civilians to avoid military sites.

UN Warns of Atrocities Pattern

Martha Pobee, the UN assistant secretary-general for Africa, said Kordofan is “likely the next arena of military focus,” citing “large-scale atrocities” and ethnically driven reprisals.

UN reports link these attacks to patterns in Darfur, where RSF units carried out killings and abductions after El-Fasher’s fall.

At least 50 civilians, including five Red Crescent volunteers, have been killed in recent North Kordofan violence.

Both forces face war-crimes accusations, and the U.S. has determined that RSF and allied militias committed genocide in Sudan.