Drone strike kills six members of Abu Agla Keikal’s family in Central Sudan

May 3, 2026 (RUFAA) – A drone strike, suspected to have been carried out by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), targeted the family home of Sudan Shield Forces commander Abu Agla Keikal in Al-Jazira State on Saturday evening, killing six family members, including his brother.

Local sources told Sudan Tribune on Sunday that a drone circled the village of Al-Kahli Zaidan in eastern Al-Jazira before firing several missiles at the Keikal family homes.

The raid resulted in the deaths of six people, including Major Azzam Keikal, a prominent leader in the Sudan Shield Forces and the commander’s brother. Other victims identified include Mohamed al-Siddiq Keikal, Khalid Abdel Qader Keikal, Abdallah Qasmalla Rahma, and al-Siddiq Bakheet Mohamed Bakheet. Two others, Haider and Khalid Keikal, were reportedly injured.

Youssif Amara Abusun, a leader in the Sudan Shield Forces, mourned the victims in a social media post, stating that the loss would only increase the group’s “strength and solid determination”.

This marks the third time the Sudan Shield Forces have been targeted by drone strikes in their strongholds, with the last attack occurring in January. In May 2025, a similar strike on a camp in the Butana Plain killed 13 military personnel, an attack for which the RSF was also blamed.

The Sudan Shield Forces, based in the Butana region across Al-Jazira and Gedaref, have been fighting alongside the Sudanese army since Abu Agla Keikal defected from the RSF in October 2024.

His defection was a strategic turning point that enabled the army and its allies to reclaim the entirety of Al-Jazira and Khartoum states before expanding operations into the Kordofan and Blue Nile regions.