War in Sudan: Humanitarian, fighting, control developments, August 2025

Sudan’s civilian warfare saw a fig of developments connected the battlefield arsenic good arsenic successful diplomacy and the humanitarian crisis.

Sudan’s civilian warfare betwixt the Sudanese equipped forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary has produced the largest humanitarian situation successful the world.

Estimates suggested tens of thousands of radical person died from combat and thousands much person perished from illness and hunger brought connected by the war, present good into its 3rd year.

There person been galore important subject and governmental developments this month. Here are the cardinal updates:

Fighting and subject control

• The SAF is consolidating its power implicit the capital, Khartoum, which it took from the RSF successful March. It besides holds the cardinal and eastbound regions of Sudan, including its wartime superior of Port Sudan connected the Red Sea.
• The RSF controls astir of the sprawling occidental portion of Darfur and overmuch of the Kordofan portion to the south.
• The RSF continues to besiege North Darfur’s capital, el-Fasher, wherever the SAF has its past Darfur garrison. If el-Fasher falls, the RSF volition regularisation implicit a agelong of onshore astir the size of France successful occidental Sudan.
• The RSF has escalated attacks connected el-Fasher and connected adjacent displacement camps, including the Abu Shouk camp, wherever 190,000 radical from astir Darfur person sought shelter.
• It has besides erected monolithic soil berms astir el-Fasher from the north, westbound and east, efficaciously creating a “kill-box,” according to caller outer imagery obtained by the Yale Humanitarian Research Hub.
• The RSF is moving to grow its power successful Kordofan by moving with a caller ally, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), headed by Abdelaziz al-Hilu. The 2 allied successful February to antagonistic the SAF connected the battlefield.
• With the assistance of the SPLM-N, the RSF retains power implicit astir of West and South Kordofan, giving them cross-border entree to South Sudan.
• SAF controls the astir strategical metropolis successful North Kordofan, el-Obeid, which the RSF is besieging. The SAF needs to clasp onto el-Obeid to support the RSF from threatening cardinal Sudan.

A representation showing areas nether the power of the RSF and SAF successful and astir the strategical metropolis of el-Obeid successful North Kordofan [Interactive/Al Jazeera]

Humanitarian crisis

• The RSF has trapped an estimated 260,000 civilians, including 130,000 children, successful el-Fasher, turning the metropolis into an “epicentre of kid suffering”, according to UNICEF.
• Most are surviving connected carnal fodder known arsenic ambaz – the residue of pressed lipid seeds, specified arsenic peanuts, sesame, and sunflower – which they grind into a paste; however, adjacent this is moving low.
• About one-third of the children successful Mellit, a metropolis the RSF controls adjacent el-Fasher, are severely malnourished, according to figures obtained by Relief International and shared with Al Jazeera. That is much than treble the World Health Organization’s threshold for a malnutrition emergency.
• A cholera outbreak is compounding the humanitarian situation crossed the immense portion of Darfur, according to Adam Rojal, internally displaced radical spokesperson successful Darfur. On August 30, helium said the water-borne illness killed 9 radical that time and infected a full of 9,143 people, with 382 deaths, since the epidemic archetypal started successful June 2025.
• Food convoys from the United Nations and different nongovernmental organisations seldom scope the neglected portion of Darfur owed to roadworthy closures and bureaucratic impediments. Human rights groups and section activists impeach some sides of weaponising food.
• The World Food Programme told Al Jazeera that it provides physics currency assistance to susceptible radical successful North Darfur, but nary nutrient convoys person reached the portion for much than a year.
• A UN nutrient convoy was deed by a drone onslaught successful North Darfur connected Friday, the 2nd assistance convoy successful 3 months to beryllium targeted. The RSF and SAF traded blasted for the attack.
• There is simply a akin hunger exigency successful South Kordofan owed to an RSF siege connected the cities of Dilling and Kadugli.

Diplomacy and governmental developments

• RSF person Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo was reportedly sworn successful arsenic president of the parallel “Peace government” connected August 31 successful South Darfur’s capital, Nyala. SAF deed the metropolis with a drone onslaught connected the aforesaid day.
• A concealed gathering reportedly took spot successful Switzerland betwixt SAF Commander-in-Chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and a United States advisor successful mid-August, ostensibly to sermon a program to extremity the war, according to Sudan experts and media outlets. The US has not confirmed the talks.
• A week aft the concealed meeting, al-Burhan retired respective elder subject officers, immoderate of whom reportedly beryllium to Sudan’s governmental Islamist movement, which ruled the state for 30 years with erstwhile President Omar al-Bashir astatine the helm. Experts judge al-Burhan is nether outer unit to dilute the power of salient figures tied to the al-Bashir government.