Sudan: One year on from the fall of El Fasher – terror against the civilian population continues

“One year after the genocide in El Fasher, the RSF—which is responsible for the massacres—is waging a brutal drone war against the civilian population. The terror shows no sign of ending. And no one seems willing to effectively stop it! On the contrary, Germany’s cooperation with the United Arab Emirates—the main supplier of these deadly drones—has grown even closer in recent weeks,” criticizes Sarah Reinke, head of human rights work at the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP).

The human rights organization is calling on the German government to increase pressure on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and to advocate for effective measures to halt arms and drone deliveries as well as foreign support for the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Only in this way can the repetition of crimes against the civilian population be prevented. “The escalation of the past few days shows that neither the UAE nor the RSF will listen to friendly words,” Reinke warns.

On October 26, 2025, after an 18-month siege, the RSF captured El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur. Around 250,000 people were still in the city at that time. A large proportion of them belonged to the non-Arab Zaghawa ethnic group. The Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale University estimates that up to 60,000 people died as a result of the attack. The RSF committed massacres, raped and tortured people, displaced tens of thousands, and destroyed civilian infrastructure. The United Nations Commission of Inquiry characterized the crimes as genocide.

“The international community was warned for months about exactly this scenario and yet allowed it to happen. A year later, political leaders must face the question of why they did not prevent the killings and why they are still largely standing by idly while people die in Sudan,” says Reinke.

In recent days, the RSF’s drone war has escalated once again. Dozens of civilians were killed in attacks in West Kordofan, West Darfur, and Khartoum. The violence demonstrates that the civilian population continues to be in urgent need of protection.

Chronology of drone attacks on civilian targets in Sudan, September 21 to October 21, 2026

September 27 – Wad Madani (Al-Jazira) and Nyala (South Darfur): A drone struck the Umm Alaila fuel depot near Wad Madani, setting it on fire; it was the first reported attack of this kind on the state capital since the military recaptured it. Two explosions also rocked the center of Nyala.

October 1 – El Obeid (North Kordofan): A drone struck a dormitory at the University of Kordofan that housed students and civilians; five people were killed and 47 were injured. The human rights group Emergency Lawyers documented the attack.

October 2 – El Obeid and Dilling: A drone strike on a facility for internally displaced persons in El Obeid killed five people; the North Kordofan government blamed the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). In Dilling (South Kordofan), RSF drone strikes on residential neighborhoods killed four civilians, including a child and a woman.

October 3 – Dilling–Kadugli Road (South Kordofan): Two World Food Program (WFP) trucks clearly marked as humanitarian vehicles were attacked; one driver was killed. UN Coordinator Denise Brown condemned the attack.

October 7 – Ed Damazin (Blue Nile): Drone strikes on residential areas hit, among other places, the El Hijra neighborhood, a mosque, the home of the region’s finance minister, and the campus of the Technical University. Four women were killed; Emergency Lawyers and local initiatives attributed the attacks to the RSF and its ally, the SPLM-N.

October 9 – Blue Nile and West Kordofan: An RSF drone strike on the area of an unofficial gold mine near the camp for internally displaced persons in Abu Shandi (Wad El Mahi) killed 26 women and four children, according to eyewitness reports; the regional government initially reported 30 deaths, while the UN later put the figure at at least 31. According to OCHA, a drone strike on a building housing displaced families in El Nuhud (West Kordofan) also killed at least twelve civilians; a second strike in Ghubeish killed five people, including three children. The UN condemned both attacks. In El Obeid, RSF drones also injured six civilians.

October 10 – Jabal al-Uqaydat (on the Egyptian border): An airstrike on a gold mine killed 72 people, mostly gold miners. Emergency Lawyers accused Egypt; Sudanese Army Chief Burhan established a commission of inquiry.

October 14 – North Darfur and Blue Nile: A drone strike in the Furawiya area killed two people and wounded eight. During a bombing in Umm Darfa (Blue Nile), Red Crescent volunteer Badr El Din Omar Musa was killed while performing humanitarian work.

October 15 – Abu Zaeima (North Kordofan): An airstrike (Antonov) by the army on a residential building killed five children from one family, according to Emergency Lawyers.

October 16 – Nyala (South Darfur): A drone strike on the Nyala livestock market killed 30 people and wounded 47.

October 17 – Bir Saliba (West Darfur) and Ankush (West Kordofan): A drone strike attributed to the RSF killed several people in Bir Saliba, including six women; most of the victims were displaced persons working in agriculture. An army drone strike on a civilian truck near Ankush killed four people, including three women. In an attack on a refugee camp in Sanakit in West Kordofan, five children between the ages of five and ten were killed. UNICEF condemned this attack.

October 18 – Al-Dibab (West Kordofan): According to eyewitness and medical reports, a drone strike on a transportation hub on the outskirts of a market killed 80 people, including commuters on their way home; the drone returned ten minutes after the first strike. On the same day, drones targeting the Atbara and Setit dams, as well as El Gedaref and Khashm El Girba, were intercepted; additional attacks struck the market in Al-Muglad (West Kordofan).

October 19 – Khartoum and Nyala, Abyei: A drone strike attributed to the RSF east of Khartoum Airport killed four people, including three children aged two, four, and six, and their father. A drone strike on downtown Nyala killed 17 people and destroyed two residential buildings. In the Abyei region, a drone struck the Amiet market near a fuel depot. The UN estimates at least 80 people were killed and 27 injured. The Abyei administration accused the Sudanese army, which claimed to have targeted fuel shipments intended for the RSF. Another attack near Todach injured 19 people.

October 20–21 – Ed Daein (East Darfur) and Chad: According to the Sudan Tribune, an attack on a refugee camp on the Sudan-Chad border near the city of Tine killed five people, including two humanitarian workers, and injured others. According to the Sudan Founding Alliance (Tasees), a drone strike on a restaurant north of the main market in Ed Daein killed 19 civilians and wounded 21; responsibility was attributed to army forces, which claimed to have attacked the Ed Daein prison. The UN Secretary-General and OCHA once again condemned the attacks of the previous days.

Sources: Radio Dabanga (dabangasudan.org), Sudan Tribune (sudantribune.com), OCHA/ReliefWeb, AFP, AP. Casualty figures are based on data from Emergency Lawyers, Sudan Doctors Network, Kordofan Observatory, and OCHA.