Drone attacks target Khartoum, other Sudanese cities amid escalating fighting

Khartoum: Drone attacks continued across Sudan on Thursday for a second consecutive day, targeting the capital Khartoum and several other cities as fighting intensified on multiple fronts in the Kordofan and Blue Nile regions.According to a military source and eyewitnesses, the attacks targeted Khartoum, as well as El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan State; Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan State; and Atbara and Al-Damar in River Nile State, while the army's air defences and ground-based anti-aircraft systems confronted a new wave of drones. A Sudanese military source told Xinhua that the army's ground and air defenses repelled widespread drone attacks on Wednesday and Thursday targeting several cities and military positions. The source said more than 35 drones, which he attributed to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), were shot down on Wednesday over areas including Atbara, Al-Damar and El Obeid.On Thursday, the forces shot down 10 drones in Omdurman, three in River Nile State and five in South Kordofan State, the source said, adding that the defences prevented drones from reaching a number of vital targets.An eyewitness in Omdurman told Xinhua that loud explosions were heard and columns of smoke rose over the city as air defences engaged a swarm of drones. In El Obeid, another eyewitness reported successive explosions and the activation of army ground defenses as several drones attacked the city.In Kadugli, an eyewitness said ground defences engaged drones targeting the city and shot down several before they reached their targets.The attacks also reached Atbara and Al-Damar in River Nile State, relatively far from the front lines, highlighting the expanding geographical scope of drone warfare in Sudan.The Sudanese army has not issued an official statement on the latest attacks, while the RSF has not commented on allegations that it was responsible.The escalation comes amid heavy fighting on several fronts, particularly in North Kordofan and Blue Nile.In North Kordofan, clashes continued after the army retook several strategic areas in recent weeks and reopened parts of the vital export road linking Kordofan with Khartoum.The general command of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) said Thursday that its forces and allied troops had repelled an RSF attack on the Jabrat Al-Sheikh area in North Kordofan involving more than 250 combat vehicles. It said the attackers suffered losses in personnel and equipment and were forced to withdraw toward the outskirts of Darfur.In Blue Nile State, fighting continued in Geisan, a locality on the border with Ethiopia, following an attack by the RSF and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North, according to local authorities.The authorities said in a statement that the attack began Wednesday morning and targeted the town during the agricultural season, describing it as a "full-fledged war crime."The International Organisation for Migration reported that around 2,500 people, or about 500 families, were displaced from Geisan following the clashes. Most moved to other areas within the locality, while others crossed the border into Ethiopia.Sudan has been mired in an armed conflict between the SAF and the RSF since mid-April 2023, which has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced millions both domestically and abroad.