In a significant escalation of Sudan’s ongoing conflict, paramilitary forces launched a deadly drone assault on the southeastern city of Sinja on Monday, resulting in 27 fatalities and 73 injuries according to military and health officials. The attack targeted the headquarters of the army’s 17th Infantry Division during a high-level meeting that included military, security, and government officials from multiple eastern and central states.
This offensive comes precisely one day after the army-aligned government declared its official return to Khartoum, ending nearly three years of operations from its wartime base in Port Sudan. Sinja, serving as the capital of Sennar state, occupies a strategically vital position approximately 300 kilometers southeast of the national capital along a crucial transportation corridor linking Khartoum to army-controlled eastern territories.
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which currently governs approximately one-third of Sudanese territory including the vast Darfur region, has increasingly employed long-range drone technology to strike deep into army-controlled zones. The assault represents a severe breach of what had been considered a relatively secure area since government forces reclaimed the region in late 2024 as part of a broader offensive that subsequently restored army control over Khartoum.
According to United Nations data, more than 200,000 displaced persons had returned to Sennar state following its recapture, joining approximately 1.2 million civilians who have gradually returned to the capital region. However, international agencies caution that these returns remain precarious due to damaged infrastructure and persistent security concerns across conflict-affected areas.
The conflict, which erupted in April 2023, has created one of the world’s most severe humanitarian catastrophes, claiming tens of thousands of lives and displacing 11 million people internally and across international borders. Multiple cities currently endure paramilitary sieges, with hundreds of thousands facing catastrophic food shortages in the Kordofan region, while the United Nations has characterized the broader conflict as a ‘war of atrocities’ with both factions accused of targeting civilian populations.