RSF Drones Target Khartoum Airport for Second Consecutive Day 

19 March 2024, South Sudan, Joda: Refugees from Sudan wait behind the border crossing into South Sudan to continue their journey. (dpa)
19 March 2024, South Sudan, Joda: Refugees from Sudan wait behind the border crossing into South Sudan to continue their journey. (dpa)
TT

RSF Drones Target Khartoum Airport for Second Consecutive Day 

19 March 2024, South Sudan, Joda: Refugees from Sudan wait behind the border crossing into South Sudan to continue their journey. (dpa)
19 March 2024, South Sudan, Joda: Refugees from Sudan wait behind the border crossing into South Sudan to continue their journey. (dpa)

Paramilitary drones targeted Khartoum International Airport on Wednesday for a second consecutive day, a Sudanese military source told AFP.

The source, who spoke anonymously because he was not authorized to brief the media, said "drones targeted Khartoum airport once again at dawn" on Wednesday.

He added that army air defenses intercepted the drones he said had been launched by a "terrorist militia" -- a reference to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which have been fighting the army since April 2023.

Sudan's Civil Aviation Authority had said the airport would reopen on Wednesday, with domestic flights resuming gradually after technical and operational preparations were completed.

But no further announcements on the reopening were made after Tuesday's attack and it remains unclear whether operations will go ahead as planned following the latest strikes.

On Tuesday, witnesses reported hearing numerous explosions in an area near the airport in the early morning. The facility appeared intact during a visit later that day by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

Speaking from inside the airport, Burhan said the army was "determined to crush this rebellion" -- a reference to the RSF led by his former ally Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.

The RSF has not claimed responsibility for the attacks, but has been repeatedly accused of using drones to target military and civilian infrastructure in recent months.

In a speech released late on Tuesday on social media, Daglo asserted the RSF "attacks military positions only" and vowed to remove the army, which he called a "cancer".

Khartoum has seen a relative lull in ground fighting since the army retook parts of the capital earlier this year, but drone strikes have continued amid ongoing efforts by the government to restore services and relocate key institutions back from the de facto capital of Port Sudan on the Red Sea.

More than one million people have returned to the capital within the last ten months, according to the UN's migration agency.

Large parts of Khartoum, however, remain in ruins, with millions still experiencing frequent blackouts linked to RSF drone activity.

The most intense violence meanwhile is now concentrated in the west, where RSF forces have surrounded El-Fasher, the last major city in Darfur not under their control.

The paramilitary force has tried to seize the city for over 18 months.

The UN warned on Monday of escalating violence in North and West Darfur states as well as the Kordofan region and Blue Nile state in the south with drone strikes and ground clashes reported across the regions.

In Blue Nile State late on Tuesday, the army said its air defenses intercepted drones that targeted power stations in the city of Roseis.

Despite repeated international efforts to broker a ceasefire, both sides have shown little willingness to compromise.

"We do not want any mercenary or militia to have a role in Sudan's future," Burhan said on Tuesday, referring to the RSF.

The broader conflict has killed tens of thousands, displaced nearly 12 million people, and created the world's largest displacement and hunger crises.



Over 100 Children Killed in Gaza Since Ceasefire, UNICEF Says

Palestinians walk past tents used by displaced people, during a windy winter day, in Gaza City, January 13, 2026. (Reuters)
Palestinians walk past tents used by displaced people, during a windy winter day, in Gaza City, January 13, 2026. (Reuters)
TT

Over 100 Children Killed in Gaza Since Ceasefire, UNICEF Says

Palestinians walk past tents used by displaced people, during a windy winter day, in Gaza City, January 13, 2026. (Reuters)
Palestinians walk past tents used by displaced people, during a windy winter day, in Gaza City, January 13, 2026. (Reuters)

The UN children's agency said on Tuesday that over ​100 children have been killed in Gaza since the October ceasefire, including victims of drone and quadcopter attacks.

“More than 100 children have ‌been killed ‌in Gaza ‌since ⁠the ceasefire ​of ‌early October," UNICEF spokesperson James Elder told reporters at a UN briefing by video link from Gaza.

"Survival remains conditional, whilst ⁠the bombings and the shootings ‌have slowed, have ‍reduced during ‍the ceasefire, they have not ‍stopped."

He said that nearly all the deaths of the 60 boys and ​40 girls were from military attacks including air ⁠strikes, drone strikes, tank shelling, gunfire and quadcopters and a few were from war remnants that exploded.

The tally is likely an underestimate since it is only based on deaths for which sufficient ‌information was available, he said.


Syrian Army Tells Kurdish Forces to Withdraw from Area East of Aleppo City

Buses carrying displaced residents drive past a building in ruins as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)
Buses carrying displaced residents drive past a building in ruins as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)
TT

Syrian Army Tells Kurdish Forces to Withdraw from Area East of Aleppo City

Buses carrying displaced residents drive past a building in ruins as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)
Buses carrying displaced residents drive past a building in ruins as they return to the Achrafieh neighborhood after days of fighting between government forces and Kurdish fighters in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)

Syria's army told Kurdish forces on Tuesday to withdraw from an area they control east of Aleppo after dislodging fighters from two neighborhoods in the city in deadly clashes last week.

State television published an army statement with a map declaring a large area a "closed military zone" and said "all armed groups in this area must withdraw to east of the Euphrates" River.

The area begins near Deir Hafer, around 50 kilometers (30 miles) east of Aleppo city and extends to the Euphrates further east, as well as towards the south.

On Monday, Syria accused the US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces of sending reinforcements to Deir Hafer and said it sent its own personnel there in response.

The SDF denied any build-up of its forces in the region.

An AFP correspondent saw government forces bringing military reinforcements including artillery to the Deir Hafer area on Tuesday.

On the weekend, Syria's government took full control of Aleppo city after taking over its Kurdish neighborhoods and evacuating fighters there to Kurdish-controlled areas in the country's northeast following days of clashes.

The violence started last Tuesday after negotiations stalled on integrating the Kurds' de facto autonomous administration and forces into the country's new government.

The SDF controls swathes of the country's oil-rich north and northeast, much of which they captured during Syria's civil war and the fight against the ISIS group.


Syrian Interior Ministry Details Results of Security Campaigns in Latakia, Damascus Countrysides

Security personnel inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood of Homs following a bombing . (AFP)
Security personnel inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood of Homs following a bombing . (AFP)
TT

Syrian Interior Ministry Details Results of Security Campaigns in Latakia, Damascus Countrysides

Security personnel inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood of Homs following a bombing . (AFP)
Security personnel inside the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab neighborhood of Homs following a bombing . (AFP)

Syria’s Interior Ministry has announced the results of a series of security operations carried out in recent days in Homs, Latakia, and the Damascus countryside, including the arrest of two alleged ISIS members accused of involvement in the bombing of the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in Homs last month.

The ministry said the operations led to the arrest of three senior figures in a cell known as “Lieutenant Abbas,” affiliated with the “Coastal Shield Brigade” led by Miqdad Fteiha, a prominent figure loyal to the former regime.

Security forces also detained an armed group in the al-Wuroud neighborhood of Damascus that was allegedly planning “acts of sabotage.”

The operations form part of broader efforts to dismantle armed groups and restore the state’s exclusive authority over weapons.

Interior Minister Anas Khattab vowed to continue pursuing ISIS operatives and bringing them to justice.

In a post on X, he said security and intelligence services had conducted a “highly precise operation” resulting in the arrest of those involved in the December 26 attack on the Imam Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi al-Dhahab district of Homs, which killed eight people and wounded 18 others.

According to the Interior Ministry, security units in Homs, in coordination with the General Intelligence Service, arrested two persons identified as ISIS members. Authorities said explosive devices, various weapons, ammunition, documents, and digital evidence allegedly linking the suspects to terrorist activities were seized.

The two were referred to the Counterterrorism Directorate to complete investigations ahead of prosecution.

In a separate statement earlier Monday, the Interior Ministry said a “valuable catch” was detained by security and intelligence forces in Latakia. It said he was a key figures in the “Lieutenant Abbas” cell. Initial investigations indicated the cell had targeted internal security and army positions in the province.

Meanwhile, in the Damascus countryside, the ministry said security forces carried out a “preemptive operation” in the al-Wuroud neighborhood of Qudsaya city, arresting three individuals accused of planning armed attacks.

The ministry said security services would continue pursuing remaining members of the groups, pledging to “eradicate them completely” to ensure security and stability.