As the army and Rapid Support Forces vie for legitimacy, Kenyan President William Ruto is accused of profiting from the paramilitary's gold trade

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and allies have signed a charter that paved the way for the establishment of a parallel government, as Sudan's army made advances recently against the rival groups.

The RSF has seized most of the western Darfur region and swathes of the Kordofan region in an almost-two-year war, but is being pushed back from central Sudan by the Sudanese army.

Turkey supplied several drones to Sudan’s army last year, and they have been used to achieve important advances against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in areas such as Khartoum and el-Obeid, multiple sources with knowledge of the matter told Middle East Eye.

Activists said three days of attacks by the paramilitary group had killed more than 200 people in White Nile state, which has emerged as a key battleground as the army regains territory.

Sudan has condemned Kenya for hosting a meeting led by the rebels, and the UN is warning the move could further divide the war-torn country.

Sudan's army said on Sunday it had seized back control of the town of el-Gitaina, just south of the capital, from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and broken the paramilitary group's siege on the strategic city of el-Obeid to the west.

Sudan's army and allied groups could face formidable battlefield challenges if the recent political agreement between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and a powerful faction of a southern rebel group becomes a military alliance,