Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have gained control over el-Fula, the capital of West Kordofan state, sources reported to Al Jazeera.

The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) engaged in hours of combat with the RSF before retreating from the city. The RSF then took over government and military headquarters, according to sources on Thursday.

Reporting from Khartoum, Al Jazeera’s Hiba Morgan highlighted the significance of el-Fula's capture, noting it’s one of only two army bases in West Kordofan, which also houses a power station.

El-Fula is centrally located, offering access to various regional and national borders. This raises concerns that the RSF could gain broader territorial control as well as control over the power station, Morgan explained.

The SAF has now fallen back to Babanusa, its remaining base in the area. “If the RSF also captures Babanusa, it could mean broader territorial control across the country, which aligns with their stated objective,” said Morgan.

The assault on el-Fula aligns with the RSF’s claims of targeting Sudanese army positions not just in Darfur but throughout the nation, she said.

This seizure, which has caused more civilians to flee, coincided with criticisms from medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) regarding the humanitarian response. MSF branded the situation as “deeply inadequate” amid one of the world’s most severe crises in decades.

“There is immense suffering across the country, with growing needs each day,” MSF’s international president Christos Christou said on social media platform X on Thursday.

Sudan is one of the worst crises the world has faced in decades. The population suffers immensely, with needs spiraling daily, but the humanitarian response remains grossly insufficient. – @DrChristou #LetsTalkAboutSudanMSF pic.twitter.com/7zio1EeVRL

— MSF East Africa (@MSF_EastAfrica) April 8, 2024

Humanitarian Aid Obstacles

Frequent clashes between the SAF and RSF around Babanusa recently have complicated efforts for aid agencies to reach the displaced, noted Al Jazeera’s Morgan.

“Aid organizations have been reporting significant challenges in accessing the West Kordofan region as well as other parts of Sudan,” she said.

“Continued fighting in el-Fula and displacements will likely exacerbate humanitarian needs,” she added.

Conflict has raged for over a year between the regular military led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF, under his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo.

Since April 2023, the conflict has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced over 10 million people, making it the world’s worst internal displacement crisis, according to the United Nations.

Both factions face accusations of war crimes, including targeting civilians, shelling residential areas indiscriminately, and obstructing aid, despite warnings of severe starvation risks.

Rights groups and the US have accused the paramilitaries of ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.