Suspected RSF drone attacks cause blackouts in Sudan’s southeast

October 21, 2025 (SENNAR, DAMAZIN) – Suspected drone attacks by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) hit the southeastern Sudanese cities of Sennar and Damazin on Tuesday evening, causing widespread power outages and sparking panic, witnesses said.

The strikes are part of a widening campaign of drone warfare by the RSF against both civilian infrastructure and army positions. Earlier on Tuesday, a similar attack targeted Khartoum’s international airport.

In Sennar, a suicide drone exploded near the city’s major dam, witnesses told Sudan Tribune, prompting heavy anti-aircraft fire from the army. Residents in Damazin, the capital of Blue Nile State, reported that a drone hit the main power transformer, plunging the city into darkness.

The army’s Fourth Infantry Division in Damazin said in a statement that its air defences had shot down the “enemy” drones and the situation was “under full control.” It added that there were “no casualties or property damage.”

The RSF controlled much of Sennar state for parts of 2024 before being pushed back by an army offensive in October. The advance forced RSF fighters to regroup in parts of the neighbouring Blue Nile region.