Sudan’s army chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, visited the army’s headquarters in Khartoum on Sunday, two days after it was recaptured from paramilitary forces who had besieged the building since the war began in April 2023.
“Our forces are in their best condition,” Burhan assured commanders during his visit to the reclaimed headquarters, located near the city center and airport.
The recapture of the General Command building marks a significant victory for the army, following its success nearly a year ago in reclaiming Omdurman, Khartoum’s twin city on the Nile’s west bank.
In a statement on Friday, the army announced it had merged troops from Khartoum North (Bahri) and Omdurman with those stationed at the headquarters.
Since the conflict began with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the RSF had encircled key locations, including the Signal Corps in Khartoum North and the General Command across the Blue Nile. The army broke the siege on both sites last week, marking a strategic breakthrough. The war had trapped Burhan in the headquarters for four months before he escaped in August 2023, relocating to Port Sudan.
The army’s recent victories also include regaining control of Wad Madani, a critical crossroads south of Khartoum, two weeks ago. The ongoing conflict has devastated Sudan, claiming tens of thousands of lives and displacing over 12 million people, according to the United Nations. Famine has been declared in parts of the country, with the crisis threatening millions more.
Late last year, then-U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken highlighted the dire situation, revealing that some people in Sudan were forced to survive on grass and peanut shells.
The war continues to exacerbate one of the worst humanitarian disasters in modern history, with no resolution in sight.
