Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have launched a rare drone strike on the eastern city of Kassala, near the Eritrean border, according to a source from the army-aligned government.
The strike reportedly targeted a fuel storage facility at Kassala airport. A government official, speaking to AFP on Saturday, accused the RSF of being behind the attack but confirmed that no casualties or significant damage were recorded.
Since April 2023, Sudan has been engulfed in a brutal civil war between the regular army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the RSF, commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo. The conflict has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced millions, effectively dividing the country.
The army maintains control over Sudan’s central, eastern, and northern regions, while the RSF has seized large parts of the western Darfur region and areas in the south.
Kassala lies approximately 400 kilometres from the closest known RSF-held territory south of Omdurman, one of the twin cities of the capital, Khartoum. It is also roughly the same distance from areas held by RSF allies, including the faction of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu.
In a significant development earlier this year, RSF and its allies signed a charter in Kenya announcing plans to establish a rival government, challenging the army-backed administration currently based in Port Sudan.
Meanwhile, on the same day, another military source told AFP that a cargo aircraft was targeted at Nyala airport in South Darfur. The plane had reportedly landed to deliver supplies to RSF fighters, although it remains unclear who carried out the attack. Eyewitnesses reported hearing a loud explosion in the early hours of Saturday morning near the airport.