Sudanese army declares “Khartoum is free” from presidential palace

KHARTOUM, SUUDAN | Xinhua | Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, chairman of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council and commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), declared from inside the Presidential Palace in Khartoum on Wednesday that “Khartoum is free,” referring to the end of the Rapid Support Forces’ control over the capital, according to Sudan TV.

“Khartoum is free, and the matter is over,” Al-Burhan said in a brief address, commending the Sudanese army soldiers and supporting forces who fought “intense battles” to expel the RSF and secure key state institutions.

Video footage broadcast by Sudan TV showed Al-Burhan walking through the Presidential Palace while surrounded by officers and soldiers from the military unit tasked with securing the palace.

According to a statement from the sovereign council media, Al-Burhan arrived in Khartoum on Wednesday via helicopter, landing at Khartoum International Airport — the first aircraft to touch down there since the conflict erupted in April 2023. He then inspected military units securing the airport before proceeding to the Presidential Palace.

Earlier in the day, the SAF announced that it had retaken Khartoum International Airport, which had been under RSF control since mid-April 2023, along with the paramilitary forces’ last major stronghold in the capital — the Taiba Al-Hasanab camp in Jabal Awliya city.

Since early 2024, the army has made significant territorial gains, particularly in Omdurman, north of Khartoum, reclaiming Greater Omdurman and shifting the balance of power in its favor. A large-scale military offensive launched in late September, supported by airstrikes, enabled the SAF to recapture parts of central Khartoum and western Bahri.

Beyond the capital, the army reclaimed most of Sinnar State in early October and seized Wad Madani, the capital of Gezira State, on January 11. However, several smaller towns remain under RSF control.

On Friday, it announced that it had regained control of the Presidential Palace and key government headquarters in central Khartoum, one of the most prominent strongholds of the RSF in the capital.

Sudan has been embroiled in a devastating conflict between the SAF and the RSF since mid-April 2023, which has claimed at least 29,683 lives, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, a crisis monitoring group cited by the United Nations.

The conflict has displaced over 15 million people, both inside and outside Sudan, according to estimates from the International Organization for Migration. ■