RSF drones hit Khartoum Airport for 3rd day as Sudan reopens airspace

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Al Mayadeen
23 Oct 2025 15:10

RSF launches a new wave of drone attacks on Khartoum International Airport on Thursday, marking the third consecutive day of strikes targeting the facility.

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Damage is seen at Khartoum International Airport after it was recaptured from the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), on April 17, 2025. (AP)

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) launched a new wave of drone attacks on Khartoum International Airport on Thursday, marking the third consecutive day of strikes targeting one of Sudan’s most vital facilities.

According to Sudan News Agency (SUNA), eyewitnesses reported that seven drones struck the airport and nearby southern districts of the capital, triggering widespread panic among residents as explosions echoed across the area. The attack came just one day after the airport received its first civilian passenger flight in more than two years.

Security sources cited by local media said the latest RSF strikes caused no major damage to the airport but warned that repeated attacks on such critical infrastructure signal a shift in the nature of the conflict between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).

The RSF had already launched multiple drone raids on Tuesday, targeting the airport and other key sites in Khartoum State. The timing of the assaults coincided with preparations to reopen the airport following a 921-day closure due to the war that erupted in April 2023.

Khartoum airport reopens after two and a half years

In a symbolic step toward restoring normalcy, the Sudanese Airports Authority announced on Wednesday that Khartoum International Airport had officially reopened and received its first civilian flight. A Badr Airlines aircraft landed in the capital, marking the resumption of air operations after a two-and-a-half-year hiatus.

“This reopening represents an important milestone for Sudan’s aviation sector and a gradual return of air traffic from the capital after a long interruption,” the authority said in a statement.

The reopening came only hours after Sudan’s air defenses intercepted another RSF drone attack on the city, the second such incident within 24 hours.

The renewed violence underscores the fragility of the situation in Sudan, where clashes between the RSF and the national army have devastated infrastructure, displaced millions, and left vast areas of the country without functioning state institutions.