On Tuesday, June 30, videos began circulating on social media claiming that the Darfur Joint Force had seized Kulbus town from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which had controlled the area for nearly two years. The reports immediately shifted public attention back to West Darfur State and its capital, Al-Jenaynah, which has remained under the control of the Ta’sis Alliance since June ,22 2023, following two months of fighting between RSF forces, who controlled parts of the city, and local residents who resisted their entry into neighbourhoods and displacement camps.
In a statement issued on Monday, June 29, the Joint Force, which is fighting alongside the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) against the RSF and its allies in the Ta’sis Alliance, announced that it had taken full control of Kulbus after what it described as a decisive battle.
The military escalation coincided with a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation. Local sources said that most residents have fled the town, leaving its streets and markets nearly deserted. Meanwhile, residents of Abu Suruj and Bir Saliba, in Sirba locality, have crossed into neighbouring Chad to escape the prospect of expanding hostilities.
One Kulbus resident told Atar that a number of homes and public institutions had been looted, particularly properties belonging to individuals affiliated with the RSF.
An employee of an international aid organization said his agency had received reports that the offices of two international humanitarian organisations in Kulbus had also been attacked and looted.
At the same time, uncertainty surrounds the fate of detainees held by the Joint Force. Available information indicates that more than fifty individuals, including tribal leaders, village chiefs, and former local government officials, have been transferred elsewhere. However, no verified information has emerged regarding the RSF fighters reportedly captured during the latest clashes.
The United Nations has said that the volatile security situation and intermittent fighting in Kulbus have forced humanitarian partners to suspend some activities and postpone planned field missions.
Taken together, these developments suggest that Kulbus stands at a pivotal moment that could determine control over the border corridor stretching from Jabal Moon to At-Tina. The opposing military buildups, the growing displacement of civilians, and the town’s strategic position as a gateway to Chad all mean that any battle fought there would have consequences extending far beyond its immediate surroundings, shaping both the security and humanitarian landscape across West Darfur.
The historic capital of the Al-Qimr Sultanate has once again moved to the forefront of events as signs point toward another major military confrontation, one that could become among the most significant engagements on the western front in the coming period.
Kulbus is one of Darfur’s oldest towns. For centuries, it served as the political and administrative center of the Al-Qimr Sultanate, from which successive sultans governed their territory and helped foster coexistence and stability among the region’s diverse communities.
Administratively, Kulbus locality belongs to West Darfur State, approximately 130 kilometers from Al-Jenaynah. It comprises three administrative units and numerous surrounding villages. Its strategic location on Sudan’s western frontier with Chad has made it both an important transit point and a key junction linking the states of the Darfur region.
Its border location has also given the town considerable military, political, and humanitarian significance. Kulbus lies on the eastern bank of the seasonal watercourse marking the Sudan–Chad border, while directly opposite, on the western bank, sits Kariari refugee camp, home to thousands of Sudanese refugees. Barely 300 meters separate the town from the camp.
That proximity means any escalation in Kulbus poses an immediate humanitarian risk, potentially triggering new waves of displacement into Chad while disrupting humanitarian assistance in one of the region’s most fragile border zones.
The Military Campaign
What matters now is establishing a foothold and creating an operational base. Our strategic objective is to sever and isolate supply lines along the border with Chad before advancing toward the city step by step.
Joint Force source
A Joint Force source, who requested anonymity, told Atar that the fighters currently deployed in Kulbus are largely natives of West Darfur who have united under the Joint Force command with the objective of reclaiming their towns and villages.
The source acknowledged that military reinforcements had arrived from the SAF- many of them entering through the border town of At-Tina, south of Kulbus, although he described the supplies as somewhat limited.
“Our immediate objective is not to seize Al-Jenaynah,” he said before adding, “What matters now is establishing a foothold in the area and creating an operational base from which we can advance toward the city step by step.”
He pointed that Joint Force operations are coordinated with the SAF’s command-and-control center in Port Sudan.
At present, he said, the strategy relies on swift raids designed to capture military resources from the RSF.
“Our strategic objective is to sever and isolate supply lines along the border with Chad,” he explained. “We want to establish operational control over the frontier in order to prevent any military or logistical support from crossing the border to the opposing side.”
The source added that Joint Force units are also stationed in Jabal Moon and Sirba localities alongside those in Kulbus. He described them as local popular resistance groups formed by residents seeking to reclaim their communities.
He predicted that the coming days would witness additional attacks on RSF strongholds intended to gradually wear down the group’s military capacity.
The same source maintained that Joint Force troops remained inside Kulbus as of Tuesday, July 7, describing the town as virtually deserted except for military units under their control.
But a senior official in the Office of the Head of West Darfur’s Civil Administration appointed by the RSF disputed that account, telling Atar that no Joint Force presence remained inside the town. “There’s no one in the city,” he said. “Residents fled as soon as the Joint Force entered.”
He accused the force of looting civilian property and said authorities were working to “secure the town in the coming days.”
Build-up and Counter-Build-up
On Tuesday, July 7, Sudanese media reported that the RSF had massed substantial reinforcements around Kulbus, where the military situation remains unclear. According to reports, the RSF has redeployed along three main axes surrounding the town in what appeared to be preparations for a possible offensive.
The outlet cited sources saying that one RSF force had positioned itself near Tandalti, west of Sirba locality, in preparation for movement toward Bir Saliba, where groups aligned with the Joint Force have recently become active. A second force reportedly deployed north of Jabal Moon, while a third established positions southeast of Kulbus.
The sources suggested that the RSF could launch a large-scale assault on the town within days, particularly after the arrival of significant reinforcements.
Field sources speaking to Atar likewise confirmed the deployment of RSF reinforcements along all three fronts, adding that simultaneous attacks on both Kulbus and At-Tina could take place in the coming days.
Conversely, information obtained by Atar indicates that roughly thirty military vehicles belonging to the SAF and the Joint Force remain stationed inside Kulbus amid continued military mobilization.
The same sources said SAF drones had carried out strikes against RSF positions near Jabal Moon, reportedly destroying several military vehicles and causing casualties. Those claims, however, could not be independently verified.
Speaking to Atar, a member of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM)—one of the factions comprising the Joint Force coalition—said the recent military advances in West Darfur, culminating in the capture of the strategically important town of Kulbus, are not aimed solely at either Al-Jenaynah or the Adré border crossing.
Rather, he said, they form part of a broader and integrated military strategy designed to achieve both objectives through successive stages focused on cutting cross-border supply routes. “From a topographical standpoint,” he said, “Kulbus represents an ideal forward operating base for military maneuvering deeper into West Darfur.”
He added that the current objective is to encircle Al-Jenaynah from the north by securing the surrounding high ground and the principal access routes. The Joint Force, he said, has identified airstrips and drone launch sites north of the city and intends to destroy such infrastructure, which has become a critical component of the war.
Requesting anonymity, the source concluded that the current campaign is focused first on securing the border corridor and the vicinity of the Adré crossing in order to sever supply lines and isolate RSF forces. Al-Jenaynah, he said, remains the campaign’s ultimate objective.
People in Sirba, Jabal Moon, and Bir Saliba
People go about buying and selling goods with one eye fixed on the sky for fear of airstrikes and one ear tuned to rumors about fighting spreading on the ground.
Adam Omrein, civil society activist from Jabal Moon
In Sirba locality, which has endured sustained waves of destruction and widespread arson both historically and during the current conflict—forcing tens of thousands of residents to flee to refugee camps in Chad—those who remain fear the area could once again become the scene of intense fighting. Such a scenario would pose enormous challenges for protecting civilians and ensuring safe routes for those seeking to escape.
Yassir Karangawi, an employee of the Sirba locality administration appointed by the RSF, told Atar that residents had only recently begun to resume aspects of normal life, including farming, livestock herding, and cross-border trade.
“But the reports we’re receiving about military build-ups by both sides in our locality are bringing back memories of everything people endured over the past two years,” he said.
He added that local authorities had observed renewed movements of civilians attempting to flee once again into Chad, despite having only recently returned.
Adam Omrein, a civil society activist from Jabal Moon who now lives in Norway, said residents of his hometown are living under immense strain, emphasizing that the protracted war has placed enormous psychological pressure on communities throughout West Darfur.
“People go about buying and selling goods or attending social gatherings with one eye fixed on the sky for fear of airstrikes and one ear tuned to rumors about fighting spreading on the ground,” he told Atar.
Markets, he said, have largely ceased functioning because supply routes have become prohibitively expensive and complicated, burdened by customs charges and multiple layers of taxation like is the situation during anarchy.
According to Omrein, daily life has been reduced to a state of near paralysis. Residents face acute cash shortages and the collapse of both social and healthcare safety nets, leaving survival dependent on fragile local solidarity mechanisms or limited humanitarian assistance that arrives only sporadically and is often subject to political considerations.
He said civilians have little choice but to adapt to whichever authority controls the territory in order to secure their livelihoods. Yet such adaptation is immediately interpreted by rival parties as evidence of political allegiance or collaboration.
“The people of West Darfur have become prisoners of the geography of war,” he said. “They’re expected to pay the price for one side’s appearance of stability while simultaneously bearing the costs of military threats and economic isolation imposed by the other.”
In Bir Saliba Administrative Unit, Gamar Yousuf Libis, a resident of the town, described large-scale displacement from villages across Jabal Moon locality. He also reported intense military vehicle movements accompanied by persistent drone activity.
“On June 29, forces identifying themselves as members of the Joint Force entered our town,” he told Atar. “Some residents stayed inside their homes, while others came out either to welcome them or simply to see what was happening.”
Although heavy and medium weapons could be heard firing, Libis said no actual fighting took place because there were no RSF forces inside the town itself. “The only RSF presence was a five-man unit stationed on the road linking the area to Jabal Moon,” he explained. “They fled a day before the Joint Force arrived.”
Two days later, on July 1, the Joint Force withdrew. “After they left, forces identifying themselves as RSF entered the town. They broke into people’s homes, looted livestock, food stocks, machinery, and privately owned vehicles. After that, everyone fled toward the Chadian border.”
According to Libis, every resident of the town and neighbouring villages fled what he described as an RSF “retaliatory campaign.” Many crossed into Chad, including Libis himself, who spoke to Atar from a crossing point on the Sudan-Chad border.
Meanwhile: What Is Happening in Al-Jenaynah?
They’re not simply covering a horse race. They’re making a political statement, producing legitimacy and signaling that everyday life continues as normal.
Retired teacher in Al-Jenaynah
According to Atar’s correspondent, some families have left Al-Jenaynah for the Chadian town of Adré following reports that the SAF may launch an offensive against the city—a sign of growing anxiety among civilians across West Darfur.
Bahr al-Din Adam Karama, the governor of West Darfur appointed by Port Sudan’s government, said recent military operations—referring to the Joint Force’s movements in West Darfur—target only armed groups fighting against the state.
In a statement published on his official page, he insisted that the campaign was directed neither against any tribe nor against civilians. He denied any intention of carrying out retaliatory attacks against particular ethnic communities and urged residents across the state to ignore what he described as rumors and hate speech intended to sow fear and division. He also called on civilians to stay away from active combat zones.
For its part, West Darfur’s Civil Administration issued a statement on Thursday, July 2, saying it had monitored claims circulating on social media alleging that the SAF and the Joint Force had entered areas in Jabal Moon and Sirba localities.
The administration dismissed the reports as “entirely baseless,” arguing that they formed part of “a systematic media campaign designed to spread confusion, undermine public confidence, and create panic among citizens.”
While the authorities in Al-Jenaynah appeared publicly unconcerned by developments elsewhere in the state, official media platforms affiliated with the Civil Administration reported on July 5 that the head of the administration, Al-Tijani Adam Karshoum, had attended the closing ceremony of the city’s Peace Derby, a horse-racing competition held over recent days.
Commenting on these sharply contrasting narratives, a retired teacher currently living in Al-Jenaynah told Atar that each side in the conflict is seeking to project an image of effective control.
“When media outlets affiliated with the Civil Administration highlight an event such as a horse race,” he explained, “they’re not simply covering a sporting event. They’re making a political statement—producing legitimacy and signaling both domestically and internationally that the situation is fully under control and that everyday life continues as normal.”
By contrast, he said, warnings issued by the governor appointed from Port Sudan urging civilians to avoid RSF-controlled areas seek to transform Al-Jenaynah in the public imagination—from “a safe city hosting celebrations” into “a city on the verge of major military operations.”
“The discourse coming from Port Sudan aims to create a sense of anticipation and anxiety,” he said. “It prevents the other side from reaping the political benefits of an appearance of stability and reminds people that the war is far from over.”
Caught between these competing narratives, however, are the city’s civilians. They find themselves suspended between two incompatible realities: one that asks them to participate in displays of normalcy and public celebration as proof of a governing authority’s success, and another that warns them of imminent death and destruction beneath the rubble of the next military offensive.
