How strategic is the city of Wad Madani, which was retaken by the Sudanese army? | Sudan war news

The Sudanese army has retaken the strategic town of Wad Mada, 200 km (124 miles) southeast of the capital Khartoum, in a major blow to paramilitary forces. Rapid Support Force (RSF).

“The leadership of the Armed Forces congratulates our people on the entry of our troops into the Vad Madani territory this morning. They are now trying to clear the remaining pockets of rebels inside the city,” the army said in a statement.

It comes like an army advanced Omdurman, the country’s second largest city, passed last week after steady gains in recent months. Wad Madani—a crossroads of major supply highways connecting several states—was under RSF control since December 2023.

RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, however, insisted the battle was not over. “We lost a round today, we didn’t lose the fight,” said Dagalo, known as Hamedti.

More than 12 million people have been displaced since fighting broke out in April 2023 between the army and the RSF for control of the North African country. the world’s biggest humanitarian crises.

But how significant is the recapture of Wad Mine by the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF)? Can the army repeat its recent success as it aims to retake areas still under RSF control?

How strategically located is Wad Madani? Where is it located?

The city is the capital of Gezira province, located in the center of the country and south of Khartoum.

According to Al Jazeera’s Hiba Morgan, the person who controls the agricultural and commercial center has easier access to other parts of the country.

“When the RSF took over Wad Madani in December 2023, it allowed them to move into other regions of the country such as Sennar in the southeast, Blue Nile in the east and White Nile in the south. “, Morgan said while reporting from the capital of Sudan.

According to Hamid Khalafullah, a Sudanese policy analyst and PhD candidate at the University of Manchester, the city is also at a “very important point” where supplies and other “logistical arrangements” can be brought to the capital.

“Whoever runs Mada has more flexibility in terms of different things in Khartoum and outside of Khartoum,” Khalafullah told Al Jazeera.

In the early days of the conflict, before the RSF took over, the city was a safe haven for displaced families.

Since the capture of the RSF, it has been one of the sites of the bloodiest attacks by paramilitary forces on the civilian population, as well as the burning of farmlands, the looting of hospitals and markets, and the flooding of irrigation canals.

Has the Sudanese army captured all of Gezira province?

No, the RSF still controls most of the state, as well as almost all of Sudan’s western Darfur region and large parts of the country’s south.

The army’s capture of the strategic city follows an intensified campaign to retake Gezira in recent months after retaking the southern province of Sennar.

A turn of events helped the army in October when the RSF’s top commander in the province transferred to the SAF. The troops of the commander took part in the operations held on Saturday.

Army last week advanced Omdurman, the second largest city, captured several regions from the RSF.

How important is the recapture of Wad Madani?

It represents a significant turn of events in the war and another blow to the RSF, which has had the upper hand against the military in the nearly two-year conflict.

The army’s takeover will allow it to enter other parts of the country that will now be cut off by the RSF, such as Sennar, Blue Nile and White Nile provinces.

“Now that (the RSF) has lost this area, any progress it may have made will be impossible and its forces in these areas will be trapped between the forces of the Sudanese army,” Morgan said.

“Wad Madani is also home to the army’s first infantry division, which will provide moral support to the army,” he said.

When the RSF took over the city, there were many complaints among officers and soldiers that the leadership was not up to the standards of the Sudanese army and that leadership needed to be replaced, Morgan explained.

“Now that Wad Madani is back under the control of the Sudanese army, the army, especially its leadership, is likely to gain more support not only from soldiers and officers, but also from Sudanese citizens.” he said.

In addition, reclaiming the city could help Sudan’s hunger crisis because the province is home to some of Sudan’s most fertile land and agricultural schemes — most farming is prohibited under the RSF, researcher Khalafullah said.

“There will now be room for human growth, agriculture, food production, etc. to solve the hunger and food security crisis in Sudan,” he said.

Khalafullah said the turn of events could also provide long-awaited respite to the city’s residents, who “have faced the worst human rights violations and atrocities.”

Still, the army already has a pattern of targeting pro-democracy supporters in cities it has recaptured, which Khalafullah warned could be a worrisome incident if repeated in Wad Madani.

How much territory does the army now control?

The Sudanese army also controls the north and east of the country, as well as some parts of the capital, outside Wad Madani. The map below shows the areas of control between the SAF and the RSF as of October 2024.

How did the Sudanese people react to the takeover?

In Wad Madani, Sudanese soldiers in camouflage uniforms ride on the back of trucks, waving rifles in the air as they drive through town, smiling and laughing after claiming to have “liberated” the town.

The local resistance committee, one of hundreds of pro-democracy volunteer groups across the country coordinating frontline aid, hailed the advance as an end to the RSF’s “tyranny”.

Meanwhile, in Sudan’s army-held towns, witnesses said dozens of people were celebrating in the streets.

In the city located on the coast of the Red Sea Port Sudanboisterous crowds waved the Sudanese flag in celebration, verified videos showed that after the news strategic city was taken From the control of RSF.

Chants of “one army, one people” were heard in Omdurman, a witness told the AFP news agency.