KHARTOUM – The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) said on Thursday it repelled a large-scale Rapid Support Forces (RSF) attack on Jabra Al-Sheikh in North Kordofan, while authorities in Kurmuk reported three consecutive days of drone and artillery attacks in Blue Nile State.

SAF spokesperson said army units and allied forces broke an RSF assault on Jabra Al-Sheikh involving more than 250 combat vehicles, claiming the attacking force suffered losses in personnel and equipment before retreating toward the outskirts of Darfur.

The army statement did not provide specific figures for casualties, destroyed vehicles or prisoners. Sudan Now could not independently verify the army’s claims, and the RSF did not immediately comment.

In a separate statement, the Kurmuk administration said the town had been targeted over the past three days by strategic and suicide drones, as well as artillery shelling it said came from a “regional neighboring area.”

The administration said army units were continuing to confront the attacks and protect the town, public institutions and civilian property. It did not name the party behind the artillery fire or provide details on casualties or damage.

The reported attacks come amid a widening military escalation across several fronts, including North Kordofan, Blue Nile and North Darfur, as Sudan’s warring parties seek to stretch each other’s forces and open pressure points beyond the main battle zones.

In Blue Nile, recent fighting around Qeisan, near the Ethiopian border, has raised concerns over the possible expansion of the conflict into new border areas. The United Nations said this week that violence in Qeisan killed more than 20 civilians and displaced about 2,500 people, according to local sources and the International Organization for Migration.

In North Kordofan, the SAF and allied armed movements have been trying to consolidate recent gains and secure strategic routes linking Omdurman, El Obeid and areas leading toward Darfur. The RSF has launched repeated ground and drone attacks in the state as fighting intensifies around key towns and supply routes.

In North Darfur, fighting has also continued around Ambro, where the SAF and the Joint Force said they had retaken the area as part of operations to secure supply routes and border zones.

Drone attacks have become an increasingly prominent feature of Sudan’s war, extending the threat beyond direct front lines and placing towns, infrastructure and civilians at greater risk.