The Rapid Support Forces have intensified drone attacks on government-held towns in North Kordofan, one of Sudan’s main battlefronts, killing and injuring people and damaging civilian facilities amid growing fears among residents and disruption to daily life.
Umm Rawaba and El Obeid attacks in September
The cities of Umm Rawaba and El Obeid saw major attacks during September 2026, which residents described as part of a renewed drone campaign after weeks in which the Rapid Support Forces appeared to have reduced the pace of the strikes under international pressure. On 8 September, a drone hit a crowded court building in the government-held city of Umm Rawaba.
The Emergency Lawyers group, which monitors human rights violations, said the attack killed about 10 people and injured dozens. The blast caused extensive damage to the court, bringing down its entire façade and damaging the front columns of one of the city’s most prominent buildings.
College damage and civilian injuries
The damage showed the extent of the destruction at the site, which was crowded when it was hit. The following day, a drone targeted a college in El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, tearing off the building’s roof. College dean Abdel Aziz al-Sheikh said a security guard was killed in the strike and eight classrooms were damaged.
Student Omnia Abu al-Qasim, who had sat her exams at the college one day before the attack, said while standing near the rubble that the college building had been completely destroyed, adding that students felt their dreams and future had been destroyed with it. At a hospital in Umm Rawaba, Salah Bakheit was receiving treatment for a serious arm injury and shrapnel wounds to parts of his body sustained in the attack on the court.
He said he had moved to the city seeking refuge after fleeing El Obeid, which came under sustained drone bombardment earlier in the year as the Rapid Support Forces attempted to impose a siege on it. Bakheit said that as soon as he heard the explosion, he realised the attack had been carried out by a strategic drone.
He added that he had spent a period amid attacks involving different types of drones, including strategic and kamikaze drones, and had become able to distinguish between them. The Rapid Support Forces did not respond to a request for comment on the latest attacks, but have previously said they do not deliberately target civilians.
Drones claim civilian lives in Sudan
Drones have become a major weapon in Sudan’s war, with the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese army using advanced technologies that have appeared on other battlefields. United Nations officials say drones used by both sides killed more than 1,000 civilians during the first half of 2026.
In May, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk warned of the growing use of armed unmanned aircraft in Sudan and their impact on civilians.
The United Nations said most civilian deaths from drone strikes during the first months of the year were recorded in the Kordofan region, and that the attacks hit markets, health facilities and essential infrastructure on which residents depend.
