Sudan’s Tasis Alliance, of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), announced that its troops have seized the strategic city of Qeissan in the Blue Nile state, southeastern Sudan after fierce fighting with the army. The development marks a new shift on a front that has seen intensifying combat for months. It comes weeks after government forces advanced in southern Blue Nile and recaptured the nearby border city of Kurmuk and other positions. The Sudan Founding Alliance, known as Tasis, brings together the RSF, led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti; the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu; other armed Darfuri groups; and political and civilian forces. Tasis was formed after its members signed a political charter in Nairobi in February 2025. It later established a parallel authority called the Government of Peace and Unity, headed by Hemedti, with al-Hilu serving as deputy chairman of the Presidential Council. The army-aligned government in Port Sudan does not recognize the authority. Tasis claims full control In a statement Tuesday, Tasis forces announced they had taken “full control” of Qeissan, about 170 kilometers southeast of Blue Nile’s capital, Damazin, and seized all military positions inside the city, along with large quantities of weapons and equipment that were still being inventoried. The alliance said it was pursuing retreating army units and inflicting losses in personnel and equipment, without providing figures. The army had not confirmed or denied losing the city by the time of publication, while no independent estimates of casualties were available. Field sources reported that fierce clashes were continuing in several areas of Qeissan and that the situation on the ground was changing rapidly. Strategic importance Qeissan is strategically important because of its location near the Ethiopian border and along an area that has become a battleground for control of key movement and supply routes. Fighting on the Blue Nile front has intensified in recent months following joint military operations by the RSF and SPLM-N against the army. Qeissan came under its first major drone attack of the new campaign on February 27. Between March and June, alliance forces repeatedly tried to advance toward the city and cut government supply lines but failed to capture it. Control of southern Blue Nile has shifted several times in recent months. Tasis captured Kurmuk in March before the army launched counteroffensives in July, retaking the city and other positions and expanding its control near the Ethiopian border. The claim of Qeissan’s capture follows recent army gains in North Kordofan, where government forces and their allies retook Bara, Umm Sayala and Jabra al-Sheikh from the RSF, reopening the Export Road linking El Obeid and Omdurman. Qeissan has repeatedly changed hands during Sudan’s past conflicts. It had remained under army control since war broke out between the military and the RSF on April 15, 2023, with ground fighting largely bypassing the area during the first two years. This year, however, it has emerged as a key front between the army and the RSF-SPLM-N alliance.
