ISTANBUL

Casualties were reported early Thursday after the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) carried out intensive drone airstrikes on the northern Sudanese city of Atbara, targeting key electricity infrastructure and other sites, according to local media.

The Sudanese outlet Sudan News reported that RSF forces struck a power substation in Atbara, the capital of River Nile state, causing electricity outages across River Nile state and parts of neighboring Red Sea state, citing local sources.

Monitoring platforms in River Nile state said the attack also targeted the Al-Maqran power station with a swarm of drones, the report added.

Sudanese air defenses intercepted several of the unmanned aircraft, while others struck the Atbara facility, sparking a limited fire and triggering widespread power cuts that affected the River Nile, the Red Sea state and parts of Omdurman.

Two civil defense workers stationed at the Atbara power facility were killed in the attack, the report said, and several main transformers sustained severe damage.

Eyewitnesses said the RSF launched a large number of so-called suicide drones at Atbara, Al-Damer and other cities, including Atbara airport. Residents reported loud explosions as anti-aircraft fire was used to repel the drones.

According to witnesses, the drones were launched from areas in the Kordofan region, particularly the city of Bara in North Kordofan, which has been under RSF control for more than two months.

The three Kordofan states – North, West, and South – have seen weeks of fierce fighting between the army and the RSF, forcing tens of thousands of people to flee.

Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five states of the Darfur region in the west, except for some northern parts of North Darfur that remain under army control. The army, in turn, holds most areas of the remaining 13 states in the south, north, east, and center, including the capital, Khartoum.

The conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has since killed thousands of people and displaced millions of others.