Eight drones targeted the city of El Obeid, with further strikes reported in Khartoum and other parts of the country
Published 13 Aug, 2026 10:45
| Updated 13 Aug, 2026 11:50
FILE PHOTO: Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). © AP Photo / Hussein Malla
Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have renewed their assault on the strategically important city of El Obeid, while drone strikes have been reported in several parts of the country, including the capital region, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing witnesses and local sources.
Eight drones targeted El Obeid, prompting the Sudanese military to activate its air defenses, according to the news agency. Medical sources cited by Reuters said two people were killed and several others wounded.
Drone attacks were also reported in Khartoum, Bahri, Atbara, and other locations, with witnesses saying one UAV crashed into the courtyard of a mosque in Bahri. The report said neither the RSF nor the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) had immediately claimed responsibility for the strikes.
El Obeid has become a key flashpoint in the battle for Sudan’s Kordofan region. The city is home to roughly half a million people, including around 100,000 displaced by the conflict, according to Reuters.
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The latest escalation is part of Sudan’s ongoing civil war between the SAF and RSF, which erupted in April 2023.
Sudan’s war and accusations of foreign meddling
Sudan descended into chaos in April 2023 when fighting erupted between the national army (Sudanese Armed Forces, SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). This occurred after months of tension between their commanders, army generals Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo ‘Hemedti’, respectively, over a planned transition to civilian rule. What began in the capital, Khartoum, as a power struggle has devastated the country, killing tens of thousands and displacing millions.
Regional and international peace efforts, including African Union mediation and Saudi–US talks in Jeddah, have repeatedly stalled. Sudanese officials have named Colombians and Ukrainians among mercenaries backing the RSF against the army. Officials have also accused Ukraine and the United Arab Emirates of involvement and recently claimed the European Union has an “incomplete understanding of the complex situation” in the country.
Khartoum has also accused authorities in neighboring Kenya of backing the RSF and has broken ties with the East African grouping IGAD amid mistrust of regional mediation. In July, TASIS, a political coalition aligned with the paramilitary, announced the formation of a rival government months after its members signed a charter in Nairobi. It named Gen. Dagalo as chairman of a 15-member presidential council, a move rejected by the UN and AU.
The aerial campaign continued on Thursday, with Sudan Tribune reporting a second consecutive day of drone attacks on the Khartoum area. Military sources told the outlet that air defenses intercepted multiple UAVs over northern and western Omdurman, while residents reported explosions as low-flying drones approached the city.
Fighting has also intensified hundreds of kilometers to the southeast in Sudan’s Blue Nile region. RSF forces and their allies from the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) launched an assault on the border town of Geisan this week, triggering clashes with the Sudanese army.
The latest fighting follows a series of battlefield gains by the SAF. The Sudanese army recently recaptured Kurmuk in Blue Nile state and, in late July, regained several areas in North Kordofan from the RSF, including Bara, Jabra al-Sheikh, and Um Sayala. Army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan subsequently visited frontline positions in the region.
