Sudan Accuses Ethiopia And UAE Of Drone Attacks On Khartoum Airport, Recalls Ambassador

Sudan accused Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates of being behind drone attacks that targeted Khartoum airport, with the Sudanese government recalling its ambassador from Ethiopia.

“The Sudanese government has accused Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates of being behind recent drone attacks, including at Khartoum airport”

Al Jazeera

Military spokesperson Brigadier General Asim Awad Abdelwahab told a news conference that Sudan’s government had obtained evidence of four drone attacks since March 1 originating from neighbouring Ethiopia’s Bahir Dar airport.

Al Jazeera

Abdelwahab said the UAE provided the drones used in the attacks, and he described the actions as “direct aggression against Sudan and won’t be met with silence.”

Foreign Minister Mohieddin Salem said Khartoum will not initiate attacks against other countries, but “whoever attacks us will be met with a response,” and that Sudan was ready to “enter into an open confrontation” with Ethiopia if necessary.

Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected Sudan’s “baseless accusations” and blamed its army for supporting “mercenaries” from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), according to a statement on X.

A UAE official told AFP that the claims were “part of a calculated pattern of deflection – shifting blame to others to evade responsibility for their own actions.”

allAfrica

At the same time, a BBC report described Khartoum residents panicking after drone explosions near Khartoum International Airport, with Safaa Al-Hadi saying, “fear overwhelmed me and I remembered the early days of the war in 2023.”

The BBC also said the Sudanese army accused both the United Arab Emirates and Ethiopia of involvement and that Addis Ababa “quickly denied involvement,” while the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry said the accusation is baseless and Ethiopia will remain neutral.

The drone attack on Monday targeted Khartoum Airport and surrounding areas, and the United Nations World Food Programme said its operations were not affected while a spokesperson told Radio Dabanga that “all its staff were safe.”

The UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the downing of a drone over Khartoum airport led to the cancellation of flights, describing the airport as “a vital artery for the arrival of humanitarian aid.”

Sudan’s military and foreign ministry also framed the episode as a trigger for escalation, with the Sudanese government announcing it had summoned its ambassador to Ethiopia for consultations and reserving the right to respond.

In parallel, the BBC reported that a drone targeted Khartoum International Airport and caused the suspension of flights scheduled to Port Sudan, while Sudan’s armed forces accused two countries of conducting the attack and Reuters could not independently verify the claims.