Drone attacks hit Port Sudan for 6th consecutive day

KHARTOUM, Sudan/ANKARA

The eastern Sudanese city of Port Sudan was targeted by drone attacks early Friday for the sixth day in a row, according to Anadolu’s correspondent and eyewitnesses.

Eyewitnesses reported seeing plumes of smoke rising from areas near the port along the Red Sea.

The Sudanese army's air defenses responded with heavy anti-aircraft fire, an Anadolu correspondent reported.

Sudanese authorities had not issued an official statement regarding the incident.

The attack follows a series of similar strikes throughout the week. On Thursday, the city was also hit by two drone attacks, both intercepted by the army’s air defenses.

Since Sunday, the temporary capital has been under repeated drone strikes targeting both civilian and military sites, triggering fires at oil depots and a power station.

On Tuesday, Sudanese authorities accused the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of being behind the drone strikes on fuel depots at the southern port, the Port Sudan Airport, and a local power facility. The RSF has not commented on the allegations.

Since April 2023, the RSF has been battling the army for control of Sudan, resulting in thousands of deaths and creating one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

More than 20,000 people have been killed and 15 million displaced, according to the UN and local authorities. Research from US scholars, however, puts the death toll at around 130,000.