Sudan’s capital is targeted by paramilitary drone attack for third day

This is a locator map for Sudan with its capital, Khartoum. (AP Photo)

BEIRUT — A Sudanese paramilitary force targeted the country’s capital and its main airport on Thursday with drones, just a day after the first passenger flight in two years landed in the city, according to military officials and local media.

The attack by the Rapid Support Forces came as the group seeks to maintain pressure against Sudan’s military while the deadlocked conflict grinds on.

The Sudanese military intercepted the drones, which caused no damage, said a military official who spoke on condition of anonymity since he was not authorized to speak to journalists. The RSF and the military did not immediately acknowledge the attack.

War broke out in Sudan in 2023, when the Sudanese military and the RSF, once allies, turned on each other, leading to widespread fighting across the country.

The Sudanese military retook the capital, Khartoum, from the paramilitary force in March, but it needed months to repair Khartoum International Airport before the local Badr airlines landed a plane there on Wednesday.

The drone attack came as the International Organization for Migration and other UN agencies called for “urgent international attention on the crisis in Sudan, to address the immense suffering and growing dangers to the population.”

In a joint statement, the organizations called for the “immediate cessation of hostilities and protection of civilians, especially children, and unhindered humanitarian access to all affected populations, including a UN presence throughout the country.”

The fighting has killed at least 40,000 people, according to the World Health Organization. Some 30 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in the country, making it the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.

One of hardest hit areas is Darfur and Kordofan, where fighting has intensified between the army and rival paramilitaries and has been the epicenter of the violence in the country. Famine has been detected in many parts of Darfur and Kordofan.

El-Fasher, the provincial capital of North Darfur province, has been under siege for over a year. The UN and other aid groups warn that 260,000 civilians remain trapped in the city.

“What I witnessed in Darfur and elsewhere this week is a stark reminder of what is at stake: Children facing hunger, disease and the collapse of essential services,” said Ted Chaiban, UNICEF’s deputy executive director, in a statement.

“Entire communities are surviving in conditions that defy dignity,” Chaiban added.

Fay Abuelgasim, The Associated Press