Escalating Drone Warfare in Sudan Devastates Infrastructure and Civilian Life

“It is an assault unlike anything Sudan has seen before. In the last week of October, not a single day passed without a drone strike on a power station in Sudan. Up to 15 were hit in the month of October,” stated agency spokesperson James Elder. 

“This year in Sudan, two in three child casualties were killed by armed drones. They are bringing war to places that were once safe. People in Sudan talk about three things: they talk about safety, education and water. Drones are taking all three.”

The UNICEF alert comes amid the ongoing conflict between former allies turned military rivals, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

With over 15 million people in urgent need of shelter across the country, drone strikes targeting civilians, markets, and essential public infrastructure continue to obstruct humanitarian aid and exacerbate the suffering of non-combatants.

The Changing Nature of Conflict

“Several years ago, there was a use of suicide drones, which was terrifying to witness in Sudan,” Mr. Elder explained.

Highlighting the deployment of increasingly precise, long-range drones over the past 12 months—some capable of traveling 1,500 kilometers—he noted that it has been impossible for humanitarian organizations like UNICEF to identify the perpetrators behind “at least 15 strikes” on Sudanese power stations in October. “One would struggle to think if it was in the interest of the SAF, or the Government, to do that,” he added.

The Human Toll: A Double Amputee’s Struggle

Upon arriving in Geneva from Sudan, Mr. Elder shared the story of a young victim from El Obeid, a region where UN Human Rights Council investigators report that civilians live in perpetual fear of drone strikes.

“Buri is a teenager. An explosion cost him both his hands. He lives in a tent. He told me, ‘I must accept this,’” Mr. Elder recounted. “He spends his mornings studying online and his afternoons gathering grass for livestock using only his stumps. His friends assist him; that is the spirit of Sudan. It is relentless. It is crushing.”

Compounding Threats to Survival

While Sudan’s energy sector faces repeated strikes similar to those seen in Ukraine, the UNICEF spokesperson emphasized a critical difference: Sudanese infrastructure is rarely repaired. “When a power station is struck, water pumps and treatment facilities cease to function. Families are forced to rely on expensive and unsafe alternatives.”

Harvests suffer, prices keep rising and food slips further and further out of reach

The agency also warned of spreading disease, noting identified cholera outbreaks and a growing threat to the “cold chain” required for vaccines and essential medicines due to the ongoing war.

Furthermore, farmers are losing the ability to irrigate crops as electric pumps are replaced by generators, which have become prohibitively expensive due to “crippling” fuel shortages, Mr. Elder continued.

“Harvests suffer, prices keep rising and food slips further and further out of reach: a lethal cycle kicks in… All this at a time when an estimated 825,000 children under five in Sudan are expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition this year—the life-threatening kind.”

As part of the broader UN response, UNICEF and its partners have treated hundreds of thousands of children for the most severe forms of malnutrition.

The agency has provided healthcare to more than 2.5 million people and vaccinated millions of children against deadly diseases. Additionally, teams have repaired and connected water systems to solar power, helping to maintain safe water access for nearly eight million people.

However, with “so many crises happening at once, everything, everything is at breaking point,” Mr. Elder warned, noting that UNICEF’s operations in Sudan are currently only one-third funded. “Resilience cannot run on goodwill alone,” he insisted.

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