(RSF) Launch First Drone Attack on Port Sudan

Sudan Events – Agencies

In an unprecedented threat, a swarm of drones belonging to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) targeted the airport of Port Sudan at dawn on Sunday. Port Sudan serves as the temporary capital and operational base for the Sudanese army during the ongoing war. The attack led to a suspension of air traffic and caused panic and anxiety among residents of the strategic Red Sea coastal city, considered Sudan’s main gateway.

The attack marks a significant shift in the two-year-long conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF. Eastern regions of Sudan had previously remained untouched by RSF incursions, primarily because the RSF lacked aerial capabilities and relied mostly on its large ground forces. However, the RSF has increasingly relied on drones and long-range artillery following losses in the traditional capital Khartoum and central Sudan.

Port Sudan, which houses the country’s main airport, military command headquarters, and a sea port, has been considered the safest area in war-torn Sudan. AFP photos showed smoke rising around the Port Sudan airport, located around 650 km from the nearest known RSF base on the outskirts of Khartoum.

A military expert told AFP that “the drone attack on Port Sudan aims to send multiple messages—first, that the RSF can strike anywhere in Sudan, and that nowhere is safe. Secondly, to halt air navigation, and third, to target the weapons depot at the ‘Othman Digna’ base, impacting army supply lines.”

7 Suicide Drones

Government spokesperson and Minister of Culture and Information Khalid Al-Aysir revealed details of the attack, stating: “Port Sudan was subjected to a treacherous attack by the RSF militia using seven suicide drones.”

He added that the drones provided cover for a strategic aircraft that also attacked the Othman Digna airbase, resulting in material damage but no casualties.

Al-Aysir noted that air defense forces successfully intercepted and neutralized the suicide drones, although the strategic drone struck a warehouse within the base. He warned that the RSF’s possession of advanced drones poses a serious national and regional security threat and called for urgent international action.

The Sudanese army also confirmed that suicide drones targeted the Othman Digna airbase, a goods depot, and some civilian facilities in Port Sudan. “Our forces managed to shoot down several drones, while others caused limited damage, including to an ammunition depot, which led to scattered explosions. No personnel were injured,” the army said in a statement.

Sudan’s Civil Aviation Authority announced the suspension of flights at Port Sudan International Airport until 5 PM on Sunday. The city also hosts diplomatic missions of several countries that relocated from Khartoum after the outbreak of war in April 2023.

Series of Attacks

The attack was the first serious threat to a city hosting tens of thousands of displaced people and high-ranking army and government officials. It also raised concerns over deficiencies in the army’s ground defenses and its inability to intercept drones before they struck the city.

Another suicide drone had targeted Kassala Airport, near the border with Eritrea, less than 24 hours earlier. The army said its ground defenses repelled the attack.

AFP quoted a government source saying that a drone targeted the fuel storage area at Kassala Airport, 450 km east of Khartoum, without mentioning casualties or damages. The city, under army control, is home to approximately 318,000 refugees according to the International Organization for Migration.

The attacks on Port Sudan and Kassala are part of a series of RSF drone strikes in recent weeks, targeting civilian and military infrastructure, including electrical facilities in northern Atbara that plunged large parts of the country into darkness. Another drone targeted a military base in Kosti, near the border with South Sudan.

Areas of Control

Currently, the army controls eastern and northern Sudan, while the RSF holds nearly full control of the vast Darfur region in the west, along with parts of neighboring Kordofan. On Thursday, the RSF captured the strategic town of Al-Nuhud in West Kordofan, a key army supply route to Darfur. On Saturday, the RSF also claimed control over Al-Khuwei, about 100 km east of Al-Nuhud.

Sudan has been engulfed in a devastating war since April 2023, sparked by a power struggle between the army, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the RSF, led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as “Hemedti.” The conflict has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and displaced 13 million people, with some regions facing famine amid what the UN calls “the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.”