Sudan accuses the UAE of launching drone strikes

Sudan has accuses the UAE of launching drone strikes on Port Sudan despite previously laying the blame at the door of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) rebel group.

As The New Arab citing Reuters reported on May 21st, Sudan’s ambassador to the United Nations al-Harith Idris alleged that drone strikes carried out on Port Sudan on May 4th were carried out by MQ-9 or MQ-9B warplanes and kamikaze drones launched from a base in the Red Sea using the aid of UAE owned ships.

Idris backed up his claim by asserting that the attacks were carried out in revenge after a Sudanese armed Forces (SAF) attack had taken place a day earlier against an alleged Emirati warplane in the RSF-controlled city of Nyala.

The Sudanese government has long accused the UAE of supporting the RSF and of violating the 1948 Genocide Convention through their involvement in the civil war.

After the International Court of Justice (ICJ) dismissed Sudan’s case against the UAE accusing the country of complying in acts of genocide in Darfur, a western region of Sudan, formal diplomatic ties were officially cut.

In the wake of the result the Sudanese requested for emergency measures to be enacted and the case to be continued.

However this appeal was rejected by the court due to the fact that the UAE are party to the 1948 genocide convention – which Sudan had accused the country of breaching – and had as a result requested that the court be prevented on adjudicating on them. 

The UAE has denied all allegations of either directly or indirectly supporting the RSF during the civil war.

However, a series of attacks on the East coast city of Port Sudan have raised fresh international suspicions due to the fact that the Red Sea base had previously been outside of the RSF’s range.

The RSF has controlled western regions of the country such as Darfur however until the beginning of May, the east coast had been one of the few areas of safety in Sudan.

The New Arab/ Reuters/ Maghrebi