More than 1,000 civilians have been killed in drone attacks in Sudan in the first five months of 2026, according to a United Nations report. The figure reflects a 'sharp' increase in the use of drone weapons in the African nation, which remains mired in civil war.
Addressing the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday (June 1), UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said: 'In Sudan, the horrific conflict has expanded and escalated, marked by a sharp increase in the use of drone warfare.' According to the UN report, in addition to drone-related deaths, sexual violence, including rape, is also 'rampant.'
Sudan's civil war erupted in April 2023, when tensions between army commander General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) leader Mohamed Hamdan 'Hemedti' Dagalo escalated into armed conflict. Fighting initially centered on the capital Khartoum and later spread to other regions.
After three years of continuous violence, Sudan is now the world's worst humanitarian and displacement crisis, according to the UN. An estimated 13.6 million people are displaced, more than 20 million require medical assistance, and 21 million are 'hungering' for food, per the World Health Organization (WHO). Fatality estimates vary widely: the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) records about 56,000 deaths, while other estimates range up to 150,000 or higher.
Human rights groups and the UN say the conflict includes mass rape and ethnically motivated killings, considered war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Drone-dominated conflict
The crisis shows no sign of improving, as both sides rapidly adapt their tactics and increasingly rely on drones. In June 2026, ACLED noted that Sudan's war over the past year had transformed into a drone-dominated conflict. The group observed: 'Both sides are in an unrelenting race to rebalance amid changing technologies and tactics of their opponent, even to the point of drone-on-drone engagements.'
This trend has also raised concerns about the expanding role of automation in warfare and the need for stricter international regulations on autonomous weapons systems. 'Autonomous weapons cannot become a license for atrocities,' Turk emphasized.
