Sudan army retakes Bara from RSF after months of sieges and killings
Sudan's army has retaken the strategic town of Bara from the Rapid Support Forces, recovering corpses, unexploded ordnance and securing a key supply route to el-Obeid after months of RSF sieges, massacres and drone attacks that left hundreds dead and displaced the population.
Bara retaken after RSF occupation
Bara in North Kordofan, once home to 100,000 people and known for its lemon trees, is now filled with unburied corpses whose decomposition threatens to contaminate shallow groundwater wells. [5] Sudanese Armed Forces and allied popular resistance forces retook Bara in July after RSF control that began in October 2025, during which the paramilitaries used the town to launch drone strikes on el-Obeid. [5] Control of Bara, which lies on the strategic route that links Khartoum to resource-rich Kordofan, has seesawed in recent months. [5] After subjecting it to several raids, the RSF captured the city in October 2025, using it as a base to pummel SAF stronghold el-Obeid, 60km away, with drone strikes. [5] The RSF, a UAE-backed paramilitary force accused of genocide by the United States and several rights groups, has committed atrocities across Sudan. [5] In Darfur, its ethnically charged massacres left tens of thousands dead in the cities of el-Geneina and el-Fasher. [5]
Atrocities and civilian toll
Local sources report hundreds killed by RSF in Bara and nearby villages such as Gabrat al-Shiekh and Um Syala, with at least 200 bodies still requiring retrieval; two elderly residents survived while denied food. [5] Osman Abdulatif, a member of Bara’s popular resistance committee backing the SAF against the RSF, believes similar scenes took place in his town, too. [5] “The clashes and RSF atrocities that have taken place in Bara haven’t been reported like in other areas, but we believe that the RSF has killed hundreds of people inside Bara and the villages around it,” he told MEE in el-Obeid. [5] “We visited the city few days after SAF gained control of it and we found that everything had been destroyed. There were bodies in the streets and houses, and the entire population had left and been displaced to el-Obeid and other areas.” [5] Abdulatif said the authorities need to begin removing the bodies as soon as possible, “as well as the huge number of unexploded war materials and ordinance that threat the life of the civilians”. [5] “We found only two old people still living in Bara - a man and a woman - and luckily they managed to survive despite the RSF preventing them from eating for a long time,” he said. [5] Sources working in local organisations and humanitarian volunteers told MEE that hundreds of bodies need to be retrieved in nearby Gabrat al-Shiekh and Um Syala, too. [5] A volunteer from Um Syala, which lies adjacent to Bara, told MEE that there are at least 200 bodies still stranded in the area. [5]
Sudanese army forces retake strategic town of Bara from RSF after months of fighting. — Source: gdelt
Health and clearance challenges
The advance has reopened the Export Road linking Kordofan resources to Khartoum, reduced drone attacks on el-Obeid and Omdurman, and improved supply flows, though RSF fighters remain in nearby Sodari and al-Mazroob areas. [5] If left unaddressed, an engineer working in the town warns, these bodies could poison its entire water supply. [5] “Bara’s water sources come from underground water and wells that have a depth of no more than 20 to 30 metres, and it’s very probable that the decomposed bodies may have mixed with these sources,” the engineer told MEE. [5] “If this happens, we may face a big threat to the people’s lives and even the livestock.” [5] “Now we are helping the local volunteers to begin this process, but they definitely need technical and humanitarian support from morgues, the civil defence, NGOs and other governmental and non-governmental bodies to collectively do this job,” said one source, who asked for anonymity as he is not authorised to speak to the media. [5] Local authorities and NGOs are expected to begin that work soon. [5]
Strategic gains for Sudanese army
Godat Abdul Hadi, a senior member of the armed popular resistance in North Kordofan, believes the SAF advance has shifted the war’s balance of power in the army’s favour. [5] “This advance has given the SAF more a secure position and protection of el-Obied, opening the shortest route between Kordofan and the capital Khartoum. It basically means that el-Obied and Omdurman have become safer,” he said. [5] Mohammed Abbas, a trader in el-Obeid’s market, said life had become a lot easier since the siege was lifted and the Export Road secured. [5] “We have seen the market opening and the supplies flowing to el-Obied after a long time. All these have happened after the liberation of Bara and the other areas,” he told MEE. [5] According to military sources, drone attacks on el-Obeid and even Omdurman, Khartoum’s sister city across the Nile, have declined markedly. [5] “The heavy drone attacks have been decreased after the SAF seized Bara and other areas in Kordofan because these are the areas these air offensive operations are launching from,” Abdul Hadi said. [5] The SAF insists that all counterattacks around Bara and el-Obeid have been repulsed, and says its forces are now moving through West Kordofan towards the RSF stronghold of Darfur. [5] However, a source intimately familiar with the situation in North Kordofan said RSF fighters remain in the Sodari and al-Mazroob areas, which are about 100km from Bara. [5] “The recent SAF victories can be set back soon if they don't advance to secure other areas around in North and West Kordofan,” the source, who asked for anonymity for security reasons, told MEE. [5]
Border drone incident with Ethiopia
In a separate border incident, Sudan's Defense Ministry reported shooting down a hostile drone launched from Ethiopian territory over Blue Nile State's Kurmuk area amid ongoing SAF-RSF fighting. [2] Sudan's Defense Ministry said it shot down a "hostile" drone over Blue Nile State near the border with Ethiopia, alleging that the aircraft had been launched from Ethiopian territory. [2] In a statement cited by Anadolu Agency on Sunday, the ministry said the drone was flying over the Kurmuk area in southeastern Sudan when it was intercepted. [2] Sudanese authorities did not provide further details about the drone or identify who they believe operated it. [2] There was no immediate response from Ethiopian authorities to the allegation. [2] The incident comes amid heightened fighting in Sudan's Blue Nile, Darfur and Kordofan regions, where the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been engaged in a prolonged conflict. [2] Earlier this month, the Sudanese army said it had shot down three FH-95 drones in North Kordofan State. [2] The latest allegation is not the first time Sudanese officials have accused the RSF of launching attacks from Ethiopian territory, including alleged drone operations. [2] On 12 August 2026, Addis Standard reported that the RSF had attacked the border town of Geissan in Blue Nile State, according to the paramilitary group and local authorities. [2]
Parallel conflicts in Yemen and Ukraine
Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council vowed to retake Sanaa and Hodeidah from the Houthis to secure the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab, while Russia and Ukraine exchanged drone and artillery strikes causing civilian casualties including on a passenger train. [1] [3] Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council vows to retake Sanaa, Hodeidah from Houthis. [1] 'Securing Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab begins with retaking Hodeidah and Sanaa from Houthi militia,' says council member Tareq Saleh. [1] Rusia y Ucrania intercambiaron en las últimas horas ataques con drones y bombardeos de artillería en varias zonas, en un contexto de creciente intensidad en las operaciones militares y preocupación por la ampliación del alcance de los ataques hacia infraestructuras civiles y medios de transporte. [3] Según la agencia de noticias ucraniana, que citó a la administración militar de la región de Sumy, dos personas murieron y seis resultaron heridas este domingo debido a bombardeos rusos que alcanzaron 23 localidades. [3] Ataque contra un tren de pasajeros La empresa ferroviaria Ukrzaliznytsia informó que la locomotora de un tren de pasajeros que cubría la ruta Zhytómyr–Odesa fue alcanzada por un dron, lo que dañó la máquina y obligó a detener el convoy. [3] El tren transportaba 593 pasajeros, incluidos 15 niños, y había sido evacuado previamente. [3] Medios locales señalaron que se trata del segundo ataque contra un tren en la región de Odesa durante agosto. [3] En territorio ruso, el centro de operaciones regional de Bélgorod informó que tres personas, entre ellas una joven de 17 años, resultaron heridas por ataques ucranianos con drones que impactaron en las aldeas de Krasnaya Yaruga, Graivoron y Surkovo. [3] Los ataques causaron daños en viviendas, vehículos y propiedades comerciales, mientras las defensas aéreas rusas respondían a ofensivas repetidas. [3] El Ministerio de Defensa ruso aseguró que sus sistemas de defensa aérea derribaron 328 drones ucranianos durante la noche en varias zonas, incluidas Bélgorod, Briansk, Volgogrado y Crimea, además de sobre las aguas del mar de Azov y el mar Negro. [3]
What to watch next: The RSF has countered the SAF advance with intensive drone strikes on Gabrat al-Sheikh and beyond, including Omdurman, al-Damar and even Atbara in River Nile State north of Khartoum, while Sudanese forces continue operations toward Darfur. [5]
