The Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have engaged in fighting near al-Jili oil refinery, north of the capital Khartoum.
The Sudanese army said it reached the vicinity of the strategically important refinery on Wednesday, following a multipronged offensive north of Khartoum, with reports of direct clashes with the RSF.
Witnesses reported plumes of smoke covering the sky over vast areas of Khartoum with Sudanese social media activists circulating footage showing the Sudanese army seizing control of the entrance to the town.
“The terrorist militia of Al-Dagalo deliberately set fire to the Khartoum refinery in Al-Jaili this morning in a desperate attempt to destroy the infrastructures of this country, after despairing of achieving its illusions of seizing its resources and land,” the Sudanese army said in a post on X.
“In the past few days, the army has been launching a serious offensive, inching their way towards the refinery,” said Al Jazeera’s Hiba Morgan, reporting from Khartoum.
