At least 7 dead, UNHCR aid vehicle destroyed in Kordofan and North Darfur drone strikes

A vehicle transporting emergency shelter kits for the UN Refugee Agency UNHCR to Tawila in North Darfur, was destroyed in a drone strike in North Darfur on Friday, April 24, leaving the unhurt, but leaving more than 1,300 families without shelter. In a separate attack, at least seven people were killed, and 22 others were wounded in an attack by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) using drones of El Obeid in North Kordofan on Saturday.

In a statement, UNHCR confirms that the vehicle was transporting emergency shelter kits to Tawila, where more than 700,000 displaced people have sought refuge after fleeing fighting in other parts of Darfur. “The driver escaped unhurt, but the supplies were destroyed in the ensuing fire,” the UNHCR statement confirms, without accusing any party of the attack.

UNHCR condemned the attack, warning that “1,314 families in Tawila will now be left without shelter and living in desperate conditions”. The agency also expressed concern at a sharp increase in the use of drones / unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in Sudan since the start of 2026, which it noted has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of civilians.

It stressed that “attacks on aid convoys and facilities during armed conflict are unacceptable,” adding that “repeated incidents in recent months are particularly alarming at a time when humanitarian organisations are struggling to meet growing needs”.

UNHCR said it would continue its efforts, as part of the wider UN response, to deliver assistance to displaced populations in Sudan, including nearly nine million internally displaced people and 862,000 refugees.

At least 29 people killed and injured in drone attack on El Obeid

At least seven people were killed, and 22 others were wounded in an attack by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) using drones on the city of El Obeid in North Kordofan on Saturday.

The Sudan Doctors Network said that the attack with drones targeted residential neighbourhoods inside the city, resulting in 7 deaths and 22 injuries to varying degrees.

Drone attacks on El Obeid had stopped since the beginning of March, before resuming on Saturday.

Civilian and government sites targeted

Other sources revealed that the attack targeted civilian gatherings and commercial and government sites.

The sources pointed out that four people were killed and 17 others were injured as a result of an attack by four marches on the El Darda neighbourhood, noting that one of the deaths was caused by shock and suffocation.

The sources also reported that the Wad El Omda oil factory in the industrial zone in El Obeid was targeted with four drones, which led to the death of three people, including the factory’s engineer, and the injury of four workers.

The sources also pointed out that a drone fell in the “courtyards of the government secretariat” and another in the vicinity of the Zenobia Hotel, and these attacks did not result in any casualties.

Other sources said that the drone attack resulted in the wounding of police major Othman Rahmatullah El Sheikh with shrapnel in the back and pelvis while performing duty in the district of El Darda, where he is receiving medical care at the police hospital.