Sudan's counter-insurgency forces have arrested a powerful militia chief from Darfur accused by the United Nations of human rights abuses in the war-torn region, the official news agency said Monday.

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) arrested Musa Hilal, a former aide to President Omar al-Bashir, near his hometown of Mustariaha in the state of North Darfur, SUNA reported State Minister of Defence Lieutenant General Ali Mohamed Salem as saying.

The state minister said Hilal's son Habeeb was also detained, but did not specify when exactly the arrests took place.

"They were arrested after clashes in the area but the security situation there is now stable," Mohamed Salem said in a statement to parliament.

"They will soon be brought to Khartoum."

On Sunday, fierce fighting erupted between fighters loyal to Hilal and an RSF unit near Mustariaha, in which the RSF said they lost 10 members including a commander.

Mustariaha is the hometown and bastion of Hilal, whose fighters from the Arab Mahamid tribe have regularly clashed with RSF troops in Darfur in recent months.