Khartoum: Sudanese authorities said Thursday that 21 commanders and 270 fighters from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) defected and joined the Sudanese army amid the ongoing conflict between the two sides.

According to Anadolu Agency, a statement from the Al-Dabbah locality in Northern State detailed that RSF's Group 55 and Group 47 surrendered a force comprising 21 commanders, 270 personnel, and 37 combat vehicles before declaring allegiance to the Sudanese Armed Forces. Border Guard Forces commander Col. Mohammed Saleh Younis welcomed the defectors, regarding their decision as a step toward standing with the country. Younis also urged the remaining RSF members to lay down their arms and join the armed forces.

The announcement followed the resignation and defection of Hamad Mohammed Hamid Khalifa, the RSF-appointed governor of the Kordofan region, as reported by local and regional media. Recently, RSF has faced a series of defections involving significant military and political figures, including political adviser Fares al-Nour, Maj. Gen. Al-Nour Ahmed Adam, known as 'Al-Nour al-Qubba,' and field commander Ali Rizqallah, known as 'Al-Safana.'

The three Kordofan states, along with Darfur and Blue Nile regions, have been arenas of continued fighting between the Sudanese army and RSF in recent months. Sudan has been engulfed in conflict since April 2023, when fighting erupted between the Sudanese army and RSF over plans to integrate the paramilitary force into the regular military. The war has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced around 13 million, and triggered one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.