Sudan army drones strike RSF positions in Nyala for second day
May 31, 2025 (NYALA) – The Sudanese army launched drone strikes on Rapid Support Forces (RSF) positions in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state, for a second consecutive day on Saturday, sources said.
The RSF has been using Nyala Airport, which reopened in September 2024, to smuggle gold from the Sengho and Redoum mines in South Darfur, evacuate wounded fighters, transport their commanders, and receive military supplies, according to the sources.
The airport had been closed since the conflict erupted in April 2023. The RSF, which controls South Darfur, has since restricted civilian access to the facility and reinforced its protection with jamming systems, air defences, and checkpoints.
Military sources told Reuters the army “intensively targeted Nyala on Friday and Saturday.”
Local sources and eyewitnesses confirmed aerial attacks in Nyala, reporting powerful explosions and smoke rising over the city. Witnesses said they heard three strong explosions on Saturday morning in central Nyala, accompanied by thick smoke.
They indicated that missiles targeted buildings east of Nyala’s Shiniya area, with two striking the airport and Karrari neighbourhoods, as well as the Al-Dhaman Hotel and the RSF’s medical department.
Sources said Nyala International Airport was subjected to similar attacks early on Friday. The “Kashlingo” camp, an RSF training centre, also came under a fierce attack by high-explosive missiles.
The army has conducted several raids on the airport since its reopening, but these halted after the RSF shot down a warplane east of Nyala on Feb. 24, 2025.
The attacks on Friday and Saturday wounded several people who were taken to Al-Yaqeen Turkish Hospital and Nyala Teaching Hospital, sources said.
Market clashes
Amid the aerial attacks on Nyala, witnesses reported that RSF elements launched a broad assault on Souk Mawqif Al-Jeneina (Al-Jeneina Bus Station Market).
Bloody clashes, involving heavy weapons, reportedly erupted inside the market between the security force assigned to protect the facility and another group that engaged in widespread looting. The looting targeted the mobile phone market and a section selling clothes and shoes.
The RSF’s civilian administration had decided to close Souk Mawqif Al-Jeneina earlier this year due to an increase in looting, kidnapping, and extortion of traders by RSF members.
Several RSF personnel, including officers, were previously killed by gunfire from traders at Souk Mawqif Al-Jeneina while attempting to loot stores at gunpoint.