ADF STAFF
Drones have been a consistent part of the year-long conflict between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and fighters with the paramilitary Rapid Support Force. In recent months, however, the SAF’s drone attacks have become more precise and deadlier, experts say, thanks to the addition of Iranian technology.
In response, the RSF has increased its own use of drones against military and civilian targets associated with the SAF. As they have been since the beginning of the conflict on April 15, 2023, Sudan’s civilians are frequently caught in the middle.
“In recent weeks, the Army has begun to use precise drones in military operations, which forced the RSF to flee from many areas and allowed the army to deploy forces on the ground,” Mohamed Othman, a 59-year-old resident of Omdurman, told Reuters.
Drones have helped the SAF make progress after months of losing ground. SAF drones played a crucial role in the Army’s ability to retake portions of Omdurman, including the headquarters of Sudan’s national radio and television broadcaster.
Both sides regularly use drones for surveillance, to shoot video footage of battles, and, in some cases, to make kamikaze attacks or to drop bombs on fighters.
Sudanese military leaders have denied that they are receiving drones from Iran. However, the RSF has shown repeatedly on its social media accounts images of SAF-controlled Iranian drones it claims to have shot down.
The Sudan War Monitor confirmed in January the arrival of Iranian cargo planes in Port Sudan, where the SAF is headquartered. A few days later, Sudanese officials on behalf of the SAF were back in Iran negotiating to restore diplomatic ties after a seven-year break.
Also in January, satellite images released by Planet Labs Inc. show Iranian Mohajer-6 drones and a ground-control vehicle on the runway at Wadi Sayyidna air base about 22 kilometers north of Khartoum.
Sudan’s Army produced Iranian-developed drones under a joint program until the two countries broke ties in 2016. Since the conflict broke out between SAF chief Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Sudan’s de facto president, and his rival, Gen. Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo, al-Burhan has re-established ties with Iran
The RSF has responded to the SAF’s use of Iranian drones by ramping up its own drone attacks. In early April, the RSF launched drone attacks against SAF targets in Gedaref state and the city of Atbara in eastern Sudan, a region that had avoided bloodshed.
Witnesses in Atbara told Agence France-Presse the attack there killed 12 people and injured 30 others. The attack targeted a militia base during the iftar meal during Ramadan when civilians and pro-SAF fighters had gathered to eat.
Recent drone attacks echo drone attacks by both sides. The RSF launched drones against a hospital in Omdurman in July 2023. Before that, SAF drones attacks led to civilian casualties as the army attempted early in the conflict to drive RSF fighters from their hiding places among residential buildings and public markets.
As al-Burhan and Hemedti contend for control over Sudan, drones such as Iran’s Mohajer-6 appear to be playing an increasing role in the fight, according to analysts. That likely means more death and destruction lie ahead, according to analyst Cameron Hudson with the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“Impending battles over Wad Madani and the Darfuri capital of El Fasher are likely to unleash substantial new civilian casualties and displacements — perhaps the worst of the war so far,” Hudson wrote recently.