NORTHERN PROVINCE — Maj. Gen. al-Nour Ahmed Adam defected from the Rapid Support Forces and joined the Sudanese army in April 2026, fleeing the RSF-controlled Darfur region with dozens of fighters and equipment. The ruling sovereign council posted a video on social media showing Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, who chairs the council, meeting with Adam in Sudan's Northern province on the border with Egypt.

Adam, also known by the nickname al-Qubba, is one of the most senior paramilitary officers to defect during the war, which entered its fourth year in April 2026. Burhan welcomed the defection. "Doors are open to all those who lay down arms and join the path of national reconstruction," Burhan said.

Adam left the RSF after disputes with RSF leadership over not appointing him as military commander of North Darfur province following the RSF's seizure of el-Fasher city in October, according to the Sudan Tribune. The Rapid Support Forces did not comment on the defection.

Adam's departure followed the 2024 defection of Abu Aqla Kaikel, who led the Sudan Shield Forces and left the RSF when the military retook the central province of Gezira. Kaikel's defection was among the earlier high-profile splits from the paramilitary force during the conflict.

The war in Sudan began in April 2023 when a power struggle between the Sudanese military and the Rapid Support Forces turned into open fighting in Khartoum and other areas. The conflict has killed at least 59,000 people, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, which said its fatality estimate is likely low due to difficulties in reporting.