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Sudanese Army Closes in on Presidential Palace

(FILES) Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan visits the Flamingo Marine Base in Port Sudan on August 28, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
(FILES) Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan visits the Flamingo Marine Base in Port Sudan on August 28, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
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Sudanese Army Closes in on Presidential Palace

(FILES) Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan visits the Flamingo Marine Base in Port Sudan on August 28, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
(FILES) Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan visits the Flamingo Marine Base in Port Sudan on August 28, 2023. (Photo by AFP)

The Sudanese army is moving closer to reclaiming the presidential palace in central Khartoum, which has been under the control of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2023.

The army is advancing from several directions, while its forces took back the town of Umm Ruwaba, the second-largest city in North Kordofan state.

The army also reported defeating an RSF attack on Umm Ruwaba on Wednesday, causing significant losses, and stated that its air force is chasing down retreating RSF fighters.

The army has been intensifying its attacks on RSF-held areas in recent days, making quick gains.

Witnesses in Khartoum say Sudanese army troops, advancing from the General Command headquarters, are engaged in fierce clashes with the RSF and moving toward the presidential palace, about two kilometers away.

Sources predict the army could soon reclaim the palace if its progress continues at this pace.

The army has also entered the Al-Azba district in Bahri, retaking the Dardoug and Nibta neighborhoods. It is nearing the Al-Shuqla area in East Nile, Bahri, and has made gains in the Umm Badda area of Omdurman.

The army and RSF continue to control overlapping areas in Khartoum, Omdurman, and Bahri.

On Wednesday, the army said it took control of a strategic bridge in Bahri and is advancing toward the city center. However, RSF forces still control several districts, including Kafouri, Kober, East Nile, and Soba, with some resistance in other areas.

In Khartoum city, the army regained control of the Rmaila, Al-Hilla Al-Jadida, and parts of Jabra neighborhoods.

The RSF holds areas east of the army’s General Command headquarters, Khartoum International Airport, and districts like Al-Sahafa, Khartoum 2, and Al-Durrah Extension, among others.

RSF forces also control southern Khartoum, including the central market and neighborhoods such as Al-Salmah, Soba, and Mayo, extending to the eastern Jabal Awlia area.

In Omdurman, the army has retaken much of the city, except for its southern and western parts. Some neighborhoods, including the Popular Market and Al-Shuqla, remain under RSF control.

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Arab World

Yemeni Army Continues Strikes Against Houthis

Yemeni Armed Forces Spokesperson Majid Al-Nazili (SABA)
Yemeni Armed Forces Spokesperson Majid Al-Nazili (SABA)
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Yemeni Army Continues Strikes Against Houthis

Yemeni Armed Forces Spokesperson Majid Al-Nazili (SABA)
Yemeni Armed Forces Spokesperson Majid Al-Nazili (SABA)

Yemeni army spokesman Colonel Majid Al-Nazili said the Yemeni armed forces carried out 1,122 operations targeting the Houthi militias as part of a campaign to “liberate” the country, restore state institutions and end the Houthi coup.

In a statement posted on X he said that the armed forces were “continuing military operations across various fronts and battlefields in line with approved plans.”

He added that the Yemeni army carried out 1,122 precision strikes against Houthi targets, including weapons positions, fortifications, supply routes, reinforcements and command-and-control centers, across the Saada, Jawf, Taiz and coastal fronts.

He said the strikes involved fighter jets, drones, artillery, missiles, rocket launchers and snipers.

According to field figures, the operations resulted in the neutralization of 1,747 militia members and the destruction or disabling of 364 military vehicles, equipment, and transport and supply assets.

He said the armed forces would continue military operations to liberate state territory, restore state institutions, assert national sovereignty, and fulfil their assigned missions.

Arab World

Al-Zaidi Warns Coordination Framework Over Failure to Bring Arms Under State Control

A meeting of the Coordination Framework attended by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi (Iraqi News Agency) 
A meeting of the Coordination Framework attended by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi (Iraqi News Agency) 
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Al-Zaidi Warns Coordination Framework Over Failure to Bring Arms Under State Control

A meeting of the Coordination Framework attended by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi (Iraqi News Agency) 
A meeting of the Coordination Framework attended by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi (Iraqi News Agency) 

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has warned the Shiite Coordination Framework of the consequences of failing to meet agreed deadlines for bringing weapons under state control, as Washington reaffirmed that its economic partnership with Baghdad was moving forward.

Al-Zaidi hosted a meeting of Coordination Framework leaders late Saturday, stressing the need to resolve outstanding issues, including completing the formation of his Cabinet and regulating weapons in a way that strengthens state sovereignty and security in Iraq and the wider region.

An informed source told Asharq Al-Awsat that al-Zaidi also stressed the need to support the work of a four-party committee negotiating with armed factions to reach a final agreement on handing over weapons to the Popular Mobilization Forces within agreed timelines.

The prime minister also briefed the meeting on key issues discussed with the US administration during his recent visit to Washington and the potential economic, political and security consequences for Iraq if the weapons issue remains unresolved, the source added.

The warning coincided with a message from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio marking Iraq’s National Day on Oct. 3.

Rubio pointed to al-Zaidi’s July visit to Washington and his meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House, noting that it reaffirmed the friendship between the two countries and their shared commitment to a strong and prosperous future.

He added that economic partnerships announced during the visit demonstrated the potential for trade and investment cooperation between US and Iraqi companies, while welcoming Iraq’s efforts to strengthen its sovereignty and contribute to regional security and stability.

Another informed source told Asharq Al-Awsat that Washington understood the difficulties al-Zaidi faced in dealing with armed groups and political forces, including some within the Coordination Framework, that appeared reluctant to embrace his plan.

According to the source, the Framework’s shift toward relatively longer deadlines for surrendering weapons followed a private meeting between al-Zaidi and Trump without other members of the Iraqi delegation. The source also cited Trump’s response to al-Zaidi’s request for an exemption allowing Iranian flights to land at Najaf airport.

In a National Day address, al-Zaidi described Iraq as a state that “makes its own decisions and protects its land and airspace,” with weapons subject to the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

He declared that Iraq had completed its sovereignty on Sept. 30, 2026, with the end of the international coalition’s military mission, adding that political instability had cost the country significant development opportunities and repeatedly forced it “back to square one.”

Al-Zaidi also highlighted his government’s efforts to protect Iraq’s interests, security, sovereignty and national decision-making from the repercussions of regional conflict while pursuing a balanced foreign policy based on national interests and mutual respect.

He outlined government efforts to diversify the economy, empower the private sector and link public spending to results. He also cited plans to provide one million residential land plots, establish a fund for future generations and economic cities, and implement the Development Road project to turn Iraq into a trade and energy corridor and investment hub linking East and West.

Political and strategic affairs researcher Hani Ashour told Asharq Al-Awsat that the departure of US and international coalition forces made restructuring Iraq’s security strategy increasingly necessary, particularly by bringing factional weapons under state control and strengthening the armed forces.

Ashour, however, pointed to major obstacles, including Iraq’s economic difficulties following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and political forces’ preference for dialogue with armed factions.

Such negotiations, he cautioned, could drag on and remain tied to the US-Iran conflict and its repercussions, potentially giving armed factions renewed justification to retain their weapons and reaffirm their allegiance to Iran.

A meeting of the Coordination Framework attended by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi (Iraqi News Agency)

Arab World

Strike on WFP Aid Trucks in Sudan Kills One

A collapsed mosque wall following a drone strike in Khartoum North, in Bahri city, Sudan on August 12, 2026. (Reuters) 
A collapsed mosque wall following a drone strike in Khartoum North, in Bahri city, Sudan on August 12, 2026. (Reuters) 
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Strike on WFP Aid Trucks in Sudan Kills One

A collapsed mosque wall following a drone strike in Khartoum North, in Bahri city, Sudan on August 12, 2026. (Reuters) 
A collapsed mosque wall following a drone strike in Khartoum North, in Bahri city, Sudan on August 12, 2026. (Reuters) 

One person was killed in an airstrike targeting a convoy carrying aid supplies in Sudan’s South Kordofan region on Saturday, the World Food Program (WFP) said.

Meanwhile, tensions gripped Port Sudan following a horrible murder that shocked the city.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the UN agency strongly condemned the aerial attack that hit two contracted trucks carrying WFP food commodities in South Kordofan.

The WFP trucks were travelling on Saturday between the two cities of Dilling and Kadugli when they came under attack, despite being “clearly marked as humanitarian vehicles,” WFP said, according to AFP.

“One driver was killed in the air strike,” it added, without specifying who was behind the attack.

Famine was confirmed last year in South Kordofan's Kadugli, and in El-Fasher in the western Darfur region, as fighting and access restrictions continue to hamper aid deliveries.

On Friday, a WFP truck had struck an explosive device in Dilling after delivering lifesaving food assistance.

The agency said it was assessing the damage and called for a prompt investigation into the incident.

Movement is difficult across much of western and southern Sudan due to damaged infrastructure, blocked roads and disrupted communications, as violence continues to escalate.

Both the army and the RSF have increasingly deployed drones in recent months, with the high-tech weapons killing more than 1,100 people in the first half of the year alone, according to UN figures.

Since the war began in April 2023, more than 200,000 people were killed, aid workers estimate, while more than 11 million are displaced, creating the world’s largest hunger and displacement crises.

Meanwhile, tension rose in Port Sudan on Sunday after the body of a resident was discovered near a hospital.

Sudanese newspaper Sout al-Umma (Voice of the Nation) quoted a local source as saying that the killing triggered anger among the victim’s relatives, who took to the streets, blocking some roads with stones and setting tyres on fire to prevent vehicles from passing.

The protestors asked authorities in the Red Sea city to make progress in identifying those responsible, according to dpa.

Several Sudanese states, including Khartoum, are facing growing security challenges, including widespread lawlessness, the proliferation of weapons, gang activity and rising crime rates, amid efforts to restore normal civilian life and basic services.

Observers say the war has severely degraded state institutions and triggered a surge in criminal activity across Sudan.