A rebel group calling itself New Nubia Alliance has joined the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-North (SPLA-North) on Saturday.

In a statement on Sunday, the SPLA-North spokesman Arnu Ngutulu Lodi congratulated the New Nubian Alliance and welcomed its decision to join the SPLMA-N.

“This courageous revolutionary decision of the New Nubian Alliance deserves congratulations and appreciation, and it opens hopes for a new alignment that includes all the marginalized people,” he said.

The rebel Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) has been fighting against government forces in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states since 2011.