The United Nations has documented a sharp increase in drone attacks in Sudan, resulting in the deaths of over 1,000 civilians in the first five months of 2026, according to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk. Speaking before the Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday, Türk highlighted that the conflict, now in its fourth year, has escalated dramatically with the widespread use of unmanned aerial vehicles.
The war, which began on April 15, 2023, between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, has already claimed at least 59,000 lives over three years, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED). However, the actual toll is believed to be higher due to reporting challenges.
Türk reported that drone strikes killed over 1,000 civilians between January and May 2026, marking a significant shift in the conflict's brutality. The paramilitary group's latest drone strike, which hit a cemetery and a gas station in the central city of el-Obeid last week, killed at least 15 people.
Both warring parties have increasingly used explosive-laden drones to target civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, dams, schools, markets, and displacement camps. This has made drone strikes the deadliest threat to civilians in a conflict that has been overshadowed by wars in Gaza and Iran.
The UN has described the situation in Sudan as the world's largest humanitarian crisis, with approximately 34 million people—nearly two-thirds of the population—requiring assistance. The fighting has devastated urban areas and been accompanied by atrocities such as mass rape and ethnically motivated killings, which the UN and international rights groups classify as war crimes and crimes against humanity.
UK Minister for Africa and International Development Jenny Chapman condemned the increased brutality, calling for an end to the use of drones supplied by foreign backers to target civilians and aid workers. She emphasized the need to document abuses and preserve evidence to break the cycle of impunity.