What is the importance of the Sudanese army's control over Khartoum Bahri?

After bloody battles in the north of Khartoum Bahri - the third city in the Sudanese capital - that began about 4 months ago, the Sudanese army regained control of the center and south of the city and its entrance to Khartoum in limited confrontations with the Rapid Support Forces, and approached the headquarters of the Republican Palace, and this accelerates its expansion to liberate symbolic headquarters, ministries and the international airport, according to observers.

This development comes days after the army regained control of the Jelei oil refinery (70 kilometers north of Khartoum), and lifted the siege on the Signal Corps in the far south of Khartoum Bahri and the General Command Headquarters in the capital, so that the army could begin implementing the third phase of the military operation it launched on September 26.

Member of the Sovereignty Council and Assistant Commander-in-Chief of the Army Yasser Al-Atta confirmed in a statement on Wednesday that "Khartoum Bahri has become clean and free of rebellion, from the Jelei Refinery in the north to the Mak Nimr Bridge in the south."

During his visit to Khartoum Bahri, Al-Atta explained that the city has become safe, "and there are limited pockets that the armed forces are working to cleanse, and we will work hard to liberate the entire country from the rebellion," he said.

This report provides an explanation of the location of Khartoum Bahri, its economic and military importance, and the repercussions of its liberation from the Rapid Support Forces on the course of military operations in the capital and on the residents of the region.

Where is Khartoum Bahri located and what are its geographical borders?

The city's borders extend from the Blue Nile shore in the south to the Qari area on the borders of the River Nile State from the north. It is considered the northern gateway to the capital, and is bordered on the east by the East Nile locality, and on the west by the Nile River after its two tributaries meet at Al-Muqran. Its area is 5,060 square kilometers, thus covering a quarter of the area of Khartoum State.

Khartoum Bahri is connected to the capital Khartoum by four bridges: Al-Manshiya, the Blue Nile, the Armed Forces (Kober), and the Mak Nimr Bridge. It is also connected to Omdurman via the Shambat and Halfaya bridges.

Khartoum Bahri is known to its residents as “Bahri” for short. It is located within the urban triangle that makes up the triangular capital, along with Khartoum, which lies to its south, and Omdurman, which lies to its west.

Bahri is smaller than Khartoum and Omdurman in terms of area and population, and is historically more recent, but it is no less important. It is one of the largest industrial areas in Sudan, and an important link point linking the capital to northern Sudan via railways, and to the south to the Kosti area and the state of South Sudan via Nile steamers. It also represents the quiet tourist face of the capital.

What is the economic and political importance of the city?

Khartoum Bahri is the largest of the two sides of the capital in terms of industry, as it contains the largest industrial area in the state, which includes facilities for light food industries, grain mills, household appliances and clothing, in addition to chemical industries, equipment and machinery.

The city remained somewhat removed from the political atmosphere of the Triangle Capital, with the exception of Kober Central Prison, which houses the largest political prison in the country, but it came to political prominence when the United States fired cruise missiles at it in 1998, hitting and destroying the Al-Shifa pharmaceutical factory in the industrial zone, in response to the bombings of its embassies in Dar es Salaam and Nairobi.

US President Bill Clinton explained the targeting of the factory by saying that it was related to the network run by former Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, and that the factory was producing materials used in the manufacture of chemical weapons.

On the other hand, the Khatmiyya Sufi sect, on which the Democratic Unionist Party is based, has its headquarters in Bahri.

What does it mean for the army to regain control of Khartoum Bahri?

Security and military expert Abu Bakr Abdel Rahim explained to Al Jazeera Net that regaining control of Bahri secures the adjacent River Nile State, after the deployment of Rapid Support Forces in villages in the Hajar al-Asal area in the towns adjacent to the Jelei refinery.

He added that the army's control over the city reduces the risks to Omdurman, as the Rapid Support Forces were shelling neighborhoods in the Karari locality north of Omdurman from their control, causing hundreds of casualties and injuries over the past months.

It is also worth noting that in North Bahri there is the headquarters of the weapons corps in the Kadro area, and the Signal Corps on the Blue Nile in the south of the city, where the roads are now passable to connect with the army bases in the Hattab and Al-Alifun areas in East Nile, and this accelerates the liberation of East Nile locality, where the Rapid Support Forces are still deployed according to the expert.

What are the potential repercussions of the liberation of Bahri on the military situation in Khartoum?

The military expert believes that the army's control of the Mak Nimr Bridge (550 meters), which is less than a kilometer away from the Republican Palace, will make its liberation a matter of time, after it became besieged by the army's expansion westward from its general command headquarters after lifting the siege on it, and the advance of the mobile force from the Al-Muqrin area eastward.

This also means that the Ministries of Defense, Foreign Affairs, Finance, Interior, Federal Government, Health and all institutions on Nile Street are now under the army’s fire.

According to the expert, the army's movement in the Bahri neighborhoods, and in the Nasser and Riyadh extension areas in eastern Khartoum, after lifting the siege on the command headquarters, and the opening of the armored corps forces towards central Khartoum, will lead to the besieging of the Rapid Support Forces and the liberation of Khartoum Airport and the Khartoum neighborhoods near the center of the capital and its east.

The army forces in East Bahri can also cross the Kober Bridge after removing the Rapid Support Forces to the neighborhoods of East Khartoum. This puts pressure on the forces, especially after the liberation of the Manshiya Bridge, and pushes them to flee or die, due to the lack of options to continue fighting in limited, besieged areas.

What is the impact of the return of security on the people of Bahri?

Administrative officer Omar Al-Badrabi, who has worked in the city for many years, says that liberating Bahri will enable more than a million citizens to return to their homes, after they sought refuge in neighboring countries or were internally displaced.

According to his statement to Al Jazeera Net, the majority of citizens’ homes in the north, south and centre of the city are in good condition, as there have been no armed clashes near them, but citizens’ property and home furnishings have been looted by the Rapid Support Forces and thieves.

He added that the damage to the water station can be repaired in a short time if spare parts are available, but the most affected areas are Shambat, Safiya and Kafouri.

It is noteworthy that significant numbers of citizens have returned to the northern parts of Bahri, in Kadro, Halfaya and Daroushab, from Egypt, the Karari locality in Omdurman, and the cities of the north and east, since the liberation of the region in the last two months.

Source: Al Jazeera