🇸🇩Week of October 26

One year after the Rapid Support Forces took El Fasher, Amnesty International says civilians in the city still face arbitrary detention, torture and restricted humanitarian access. The British sanctions announced this week come a year after the city's fall and the massacres of civilians that followed.12

The UK sanctioned 15 senior commanders from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese army, and pledged £15 million in aid. The measures target commanders from both sides of the war.32

More than 100 civilians were reportedly killed in a drone strike on Tangong Market in South Darfur, as power stations in Sudan were also targeted.4

The Abu Dhabi Federal Appeals Court on Thursday sentenced eight Sudanese defendants to life imprisonment in a case of illegal arms and ammunition trafficking and money laundering, tied to arms deals for the Sudanese army. Among those convicted were Yasser al-Atta, chief of staff of the Sudanese army, former intelligence chief Salah Abdullah Gosh, and army finance official Othman al-Zubair.12

The charges covered the unlawful trade in weapons and munitions intended for supply to the Sudanese army, with the court also issuing convictions on money-laundering counts.12

On the same day, Sudan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused the Rapid Support Forces of using drones supplied by the United Arab Emirates and launched from Ethiopian territory to strike civilian infrastructure, including airports, power and water stations, hospitals, fuel depots and oil pipelines. The ministry said the drone attacks had escalated in recent weeks.3

Sudan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused the Rapid Support Forces of using drones supplied by the United Arab Emirates and launched from Ethiopian territory to strike civilian infrastructure, including airports, power and water stations, hospitals, fuel depots and oil pipelines. The ministry said in a statement on Thursday that the drone attacks had escalated in recent weeks.1

The Sudanese government made a direct accusation against Ethiopia of involvement in supporting and facilitating Rapid Support Forces attacks on civilian sites and infrastructure in several states. It said it holds technical evidence and satellite images showing the drones launching from inside Ethiopian territory, and it threatened to respond.2

A United Nations spokesman said civilians across Sudan remain trapped between an escalating drone war, repression by the authorities and severe deprivation, while both warring sides continue to commit widespread violations. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said drone attacks are disrupting basic services for millions of people in Sudan and stressed the need to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure.34

Five people, including two women and a child, were killed in drone attacks by the Rapid Support Forces on areas of Kernoi locality in North Darfur state. In March, the Rapid Support Forces and its allies launched a wide military operation in the northwestern localities of North Darfur aimed at controlling Umbaru, Kernoi and Al-Tina, but the army and its allies in the Joint Force repelled the attacks.5

The UK has sanctioned 15 senior commanders from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese army, targeting officers from both sides of the war. The measures were announced one year after the fall of El Fasher and the massacres of civilians that followed.12

The UK pledged £15 million in aid to Sudan alongside the sanctions announcement.1

A drone strike on Tangong Market in Nyala, South Darfur, killed more than 100 civilians, and power stations in Sudan were also targeted. Tasees later placed the toll from the South Darfur market strike at 188, and MSF received 36 bodies in Nyala.34

Sudan says 162 drone attacks launched from Ethiopian territory have killed more than 400 civilians. The UN and France have expressed concern over escalating drone attacks across Sudan.56

Chinese peacekeepers deployed anti-drone detection and jamming equipment in the disputed Abyei region after a deadly attack. Intense fighting in Blue Nile state drove fresh waves of displaced civilians into shelters.78

Sudan's Sovereignty Council head and army commander Abdel Fattah al-Burhan arrived in Moscow on Thursday, leading Sudan's delegation to the third Russia-Africa summit. The summit runs on 28 and 29 October under the slogan "For Peace, Security and Development," with more than 20 African leaders and representatives of about 48 African countries taking part.12

Addressing the summit, Burhan said his government seeks peace and stability that preserves Sudan's dignity and unity and meets its people's aspirations, and that it wants a purely Sudanese peace "without dictates or external interventions." He also said the Moscow summit reflects the steady development of Russian-African relations and full commitment to the outcomes of the two previous summits, their ministerial meetings and the joint work plan.34

The summit adopted a work plan extending to 2029 to develop economic and trade relations between Russia and Africa. Moscow hosted this third edition after Sochi hosted the first in October 2019 and St Petersburg the second.5

In his own speech to the summit in Moscow, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said Egypt categorically rejects any attempts to undermine Sudan's unity or to compromise its sovereignty, territorial integrity and national institutions. He called for uniting efforts to end the war and to support a political path leading to a purely Sudanese dialogue.6

Separately, the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal sentenced eight defendants to life in prison, including Sudanese army chief of staff Yasser al-Atta, former Sudanese intelligence chief Salah Gosh and army finance official Othman al-Zubair. The case concerned illicit trafficking in arms and ammunition and money laundering linked to arms deals for the Sudanese army.7