Full Analysis Summary
Atbara drone strikes report
Early on Thursday the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) carried out intensive drone strikes on the northern Sudanese city of Atbara and nearby towns.
The strikes directly hit a power substation and the Al‑Maqran (Al‑Muqran) power station in River Nile state, triggering fires, severe transformer damage and widespread blackouts across River Nile state, parts of Red Sea state and areas of Omdurman.
Two civil defence workers at the Atbara power site were reported killed.
Anadolu Ajansı and Al‑Jazeera Net report that Sudanese air defences intercepted some unmanned aircraft while others struck facilities.
The Sudan Electricity Company is quoted as confirming the deaths and transformer hits that produced outages across several states.
Drone strikes and outages
Reports indicate the RSF employed large numbers of small unmanned systems, including what eyewitnesses described as 'so‑called suicide drones,' launched at Atbara airport, Al‑Damer and other towns.
Sudanese air defences and army anti‑aircraft units reportedly intercepted some of the drones, but others struck civilian power sites.
Anadolu Ajansı highlights strikes on the Atbara power site and says two civil defence workers were killed.
Al‑Jazeera similarly reports interceptions by army units, lists substations hit in Atbara and El Damer, and adds outages in Shendi.
Coverage Differences
Narrative detail / terminology
Anadolu Ajansı uses the phrase 'so‑called suicide drones' and lists specific targets including Atbara airport and Al‑Damer, whereas Al‑Jazeera Net emphasizes army anti‑aircraft interception and enumerates substations (Atbara and El Damer) with a broader list of affected towns including Shendi. The two sources thus differ in wording and the specific geographic scope they emphasize.
RSF operations and coverage
Al-Jazeera Net reports broader Rapid Support Forces operations in Kordofan and Darfur, citing eyewitnesses via Agence France-Presse.
It says a drone strike on the village of Al-Kurkal in South Kordofan killed eight people, all women, as displaced people fleeing the besieged city of Kadugli arrived.
Al-Jazeera notes Kadugli has been under RSF siege for about a year and a half after the group seized large parts of western Darfur.
Anadolu Ajansı's coverage focuses on electricity infrastructure and the Atbara strikes and does not include the Al-Kurkal civilian casualty detail or the longer siege context in Kordofan.
Civilian impact and coverage
Both accounts show an immediate humanitarian and service impact.
Damaged main transformers and direct strikes on supply infrastructure caused broad outages that will affect civilians across multiple states and complicate emergency response.
Reported deaths at the Atbara site and in South Kordofan underline the civilian toll.
The two sources differ in tone and breadth.
Anadolu Ajansı gives a concentrated account of infrastructure damage and local eyewitness reports of drone launches and airport targeting.
Al‑Jazeera adds corporate (Sudan Electricity Company), military and international‑wire (AFP) sourcing to foreground both official confirmation and broader civilian casualties.