Sudan's Burhan confronts UAE and Ethiopia over Khartoum airport drone strikes

“Sudan's Burhan confronts UAE and Ethiopia over Khartoum airport drone strikes Submitted by Oscar Rickett on Tue, 05/05/2026 - 14:03 Exclusive: Sudanese General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan tells MEE his forces will keep the 'nation protected' after RSF strikes Drone attacks at Khartoum airport, Sudan, are seen from the road on Monday 4 May (Social media) Off Sudanese army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan has told Middle East Eye that his forces are prepared to defend their nation after drones allegedly launched from Ethiopia struck Khartoum airport five times on Monday. “If we confirm following investigations that the drones came from Ethiopia, we will take the necessary steps to keep Sudanese land and the Sudanese nation protected, in coordination with the international community,” Burhan said after the drone strikes. A Sudanese intelligence source told MEE that the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and its Joint Forces allies were preparing a “heavy deployment” to Blue Nile state, which borders Ethiopia, and al-Fashaga, a disputed area between the two countries. The source said that the Sudanese army and government were expecting an increase in such attacks, as relations between Sudan and Ethiopia continue to deteriorate and the prospect of an outright confrontation between the two nations grows. Last month, MEE reported exclusively on the use of an Ethiopian army base at Asosa, in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, to assist the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) , which has been at war with the SAF since April 2023 and is backed by Ethiopia’s ally, the United Arab Emirates . Sudanese government and intelligence sources said that following the report, Ethiopia avoided replying directly to their requests for clarity on the matter. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has not met with Burhan. The Sudanese government and army have accused the UAE of also being involved in Monday’s RSF drone attacks. Ethiopia rejected what it described as “baseless accusations”. The UAE has continued to deny being involved in Sudan’s war. Sudan accuses UAE and Ethiopia On Monday, RSF drones, which the Sudanese government, military and intelligence sources say were launched from Ethiopia’s Bahir Dar airport, struck Khartoum’s airport five times. Exclusive: The Ethiopian army base covertly supporting Sudan’s RSF Read More » The “kamikaze” drones are from China ’s CH family of unmanned aerial vehicles and were modified so that they could carry at least four missiles. They are capable of flying silently. One of the drones was intercepted on its way to Khartoum airport, crashing into a house in an eastern neighbourhood of Sudan's capital. Speaking at a joint press conference in Khartoum at midnight on Monday, SAF spokesman Brigadier General Asim Awad Abdelwahab and Sudanese Foreign Minister Mohieddin Salem openly accused Ethiopia and the UAE of being behind the drone attacks. “We have strong and hard evidence proving the involvement of Ethiopia and UAE in this aggression against Sudan, which represents a violation of our sovereignty and of international laws,” Awad said. The army spokesperson said that Sudanese air defence forces had repeatedly intercepted drones launched from Ethiopia since March. “On 1 March, three drones flown from Bahir Dar in Ethiopia attacked locations in White Nile, Blue Nile, South and North Kordofan states,” Awad said. 'Ethiopia and the UAE have repeatedly practised these violations against Sudan' - Sudanese Foreign Minister Mohieddin Salem He said that a drone attack on 17 March had enabled the SAF to conclude that “the drone number S-88 has been owned by the UAE and moved from Bahir Dar in Ethiopia to attack Sudan”. Awad accused Ethiopia and the UAE of being behind RSF drone attacks on Kurmuk, in Blue Nile state, and el-Obeid, in North Kordofan. Salem, the Sudanese foreign minister, said his government would file international complaints against Ethiopia and the UAE. “Ethiopia and the UAE have repeatedly practised these violations against Sudan, and we have the right to react – and they know that when we say it, we mean it,” he told the press conference. Ethiopia rejected what it called “the latest baseless accusations made against it during the joint press conference by the Sudanese Armed Forces, foreign minister and military spokesperson”. In a statement, Ethiopia’s foreign ministry said it had “exercised restraint and refrained from publicising the grave violations of Ethiopia’s territorial integrity and national security committed by some belligerents in the Sudanese civil war,” accusing the SAF of using Tigrayan rebels, as well as arming and supporting them financially. Drone attacks across Sudan A source in Sudan’s civil aviation authority told MEE that flights in and out of Khartoum airport had been stopped for security reasons, adding that the drone attacks had caused minor damage that could be repaired quickly. “This attack has happened intentionally to disturb international flights that were scheduled to begin on 4 May to many neighbouring countries,” the source said. 'This has caused panic and spread of rumours among civilians, especially the thousands of people who have recently back to their homes in Khartoum' - Khartoum resident “Khartoum airport has been operating for local flights and international flights via Port Sudan airport, but we upgraded that to the point that Khartoum airport would receive direct international flights,” they said. Sources and eyewitnesses told MEE that drone attacks on Monday were not limited to Khartoum airport, revealing that other locations including military air bases were targeted but that ground defences repulsed them. On Monday, Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab confirmed damage consistent with an aerial bombardment to a fuel depot in Kenana, White Nile State, in satellite imagery collected between 26 February and 4 May. A military source said that monitoring and radar had on Monday helped intercept strategic drone attacks in Blue Nile state, near the Ethiopian border, and Jabal Awliya, south of Khartoum. Eyewitnesses in Omdurman, Jabal Awliya and eastern Khartoum described being awoken by the sound of explosions early on Monday morning. “We woke up early in the morning with the sounds of the bombs and the ground defence forces coming from around Wadi Seidna military airport in Omdurman,” a local citizen told MEE over the phone. “I heard the bombs and saw the smoke coming from the airport at 12pm on Monday,” another eyewitness, who lives on Obaid Khatim street, just a few metres to the east of Khartoum airport, said. How UAE bases arming Sudan's RSF support US 'grey ops' in Somalia Read More » “This has caused panic and spread of rumours among civilians, especially the thousands of people who have recently come back to their homes in Khartoum,” a civilian who recently returned to their home in the Sudanese capital told MEE. “I think these attempts are aimed at creating panic among the people and spoiling the attempts of voluntarily returning people to their homes. So, we urge the Rapid Support Forces and those who are supporting it not to attack these civilian locations and complicate the life of the civilians,” a Khartoum native living just west of the airport said. “We also demand that the SAF works seriously on the protection of civilians." Two sources working at telecommunications companies told MEE that they had evacuated non-essential staff out of Khartoum to avoid harm. “MTN and Zain companies have decided to evacuate staff to Atbara city in River Nile state,” one of the sources said. Despite this, life in Khartoum and particularly in its twin city, Omdurman, has so far been unaffected. But civilians across the capital worry that the process of returning residents to their homes, which has been spearheaded by grassroots initiatives and the government, could be interrupted by the attacks. Sudan war Mohammed Amin Khartoum News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0

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