WFP: The RSF Militia Loots a Plane

By: Mohammed Wadaa

News Analysis
Looting the plane represents an aggression against one of the most important United Nations agencies, and a violation of the immunity of the international organization
Before the war, the militias tried to obtain fighter planes and trained pilots in Ethiopia
The militia has obtained drones, and is trying to obtain more advanced drones
The UAE provided encrypted paths and channels for control and command
The army eyed the militia’s attempts to develop its capabilities in using drones
A circulating video clip of a truck carrying a helicopter belonging to the World Food Program (WFP), according to the logo written on it. It is a United Nations agency that has and continues to play an important role in providing food to conflict areas in the world. It has a well-known role in Sudan for decades, and has been subjected to looting of its warehouses after the militia occupied Gezira, and the WFPissued a statement indicating that the warehouse contained enough stock to feed approximately 1.5 million people suffering from severe food insecurity for one month in the state, as the new attack forced more than 300,000 people to flee. This included specialized foods aimed at preventing and supporting the treatment of malnutrition for more than 20,000 children and pregnant and breastfeeding women. The World Food Program said that it was forced to temporarily stop distribution operations in Gezira State following the incident, and that it is restructuring its humanitarian response, as it began some distribution operations in the states located to the east, where people fleeing Gezira took refuge,
The looted plane is a plane designated for civilian use, and cannot be used militarily. It seems that it is unable to fly, and this is explained by its being carried on a truck over long distances. This act represents aggression against one of the most important United Nations agencies, and a violation of the immunity of the international organization. This behavior reflects the militia’s passion and fear of aircraft. Before the outbreak of the war, the militia tried to obtain combat aircraft, and trained pilots in Ethiopia, in addition to obtaining drones.
Since the beginning of the war on April 15, the militia has sought to obtain more advanced drones from the UAE, Russian Wagner, and international arms sales intermediaries. Information indicates that it has recently prepared equipment to use offensive drones, even though these equipment were bombed and destroyed several times by weapons. Sudanese air force, but these efforts did not stop, especially after the UAE provided encrypted channels for control and command, with the militia’s continued communications to obtain fighter aircraft.
Military experts point out that the drones that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) recently obtained fly at a speed of 100 km/hour and carry explosives of a maximum of 5 kilograms and the flight range is 40 km. They are easy to snip by means of air defense, or by jamming them or penetrating and landing them, while the army has Sudanese advanced drones capable of hitting several targets at a time, with the ability to conduct reconnaissance and work at night, and carry out missions at distances exceeding 250 km.
Without a doubt, the army focused on the militia’s attempts to develop its capabilities in using drones, and to abort these attempts by destroying them as soon as they entered Sudanese territory, and to prepare technically and technologically to deal with any shipments that escaped the aerial bombardment, and indeed many of the attempts were aborted.
April 8, 2024