Foreign fighters and external support fuel Sudan’s war: UN-backed probe

What the report says

A UN-backed fact-finding mission says Sudan’s war is being prolonged and intensified by foreign recruitment networks, outside military support and the transfer of weapons and technology to both sides of the conflict. Al Jazeera reported that the investigation, released on Thursday, focuses on the fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has raged since April 2023.

According to the report, transnational actors operating across several countries recruited, trained and deployed foreign personnel for the RSF, while there were also reasonable grounds to believe the SAF used foreign-supplied drones in operations that harmed civilians and civilian infrastructure. The mission said external backing has significantly improved drone capabilities on both sides, widening the reach of attacks beyond front lines.

The investigation described serious consequences for civilians, including documented strikes in areas such as Kalogi in South Kordofan, Ad-Da’ein in East Darfur and el-Obeid in North Kordofan. It also said support networks linked to countries including Colombia, the United Arab Emirates, Chad, Libya and Somalia helped move personnel, weapons and logistics. The UAE, Chad and Somalia responded to the allegations in different ways, while Colombia said it opposed mercenarism.

The report urged states to stop illicit supply chains and enforce the UN arms embargo. Separately, the UN says the war has displaced more than 12 million people and pushed millions more into neighboring countries, adding to one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.