The humanitarian situation in Sudan remains dire as the country’s army – the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) – remains locked in a devastating conflict with the paramilitary, Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The generals leading the two sides, both accused of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in the resource-rich Northeast African nation, show no real signs of yielding to international calls for a ceasefire.

Here are the key battlefield, humanitarian and political developments from this month.

Fighting and military control

• The RSF has been killing civilians and solidifying its control over the West Darfur state after taking over el-Fasher, the last remaining army stronghold in the region, in late October.
• The SAF holds most of the eastern and central parts of the country, including capital Khartoum and parts of Kordofan. But the RSF and some of its allied militias have been mobilising troops and equipment to take more areas in central Kordofan.
• The RSF has set its sights on Babnusa and el-Obeid, strategic cities that offer a vital military advantage as they provide a route to Khartoum and an economic edge as they are rich in agricultural, livestock and petroleum resources.
• Army soldiers celebrated their takeovers of Kazqil and Um Dam Haj Ahmed in North Kordofan in mid-November, and have been holding on to territory in central Sudan as international stakeholders push for a ceasefire that could potentially freeze battle lines.

Humanitarian crisis

• Witnesses and international aid agencies working on the ground in Darfur recounted widespread horrific instances of atrocities committed by the RSF in the aftermath of its bloody takeover of el-Fasher. Evidence shows RSF militias engaged in mass killings, rape of women and girls, and taking hostages for ransom.
• Thousands of people remain missing after fleeing el-Fasher for surrounding areas like Tawila. Thousands more Sudanese civilians were forced to run to neighbouring Chad, where the humanitarian situation is faring no better, and agencies are working to assist people amid depleting UN finances.
• Satellite images showed that the RSF systematically burned and buried a large number of bodies in mass graves across multiple areas of el-Fasher to hide what a Sudanese nongovernmental medical organisation called a “genocide”.
• The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, or IPC, in early November confirmed that famine had been detected not only in el-Fasher, but also in Kadugli, located in South Kordofan. The United Nations-backed global hunger monitor said 20 other areas in Darfur and Kordofan were also at serious risk of sliding into famine conditions as most aid remains blocked.
• Amy Pope, director general of the UN’s International Organization for Migration, said Sudan has the world’s largest displacement crisis and that it does not get the attention it deserves despite mostly affecting children and women. Nearly 14 million people are displaced internally or forced to flee to impoverished neighbouring countries.

Diplomacy and political developments