Drone Strike Hits Sudan’s Al-Kurmuk Near Ethiopian Border, Official Says

19 February 2026

Wreckage of a suicide drone that attacked Al-Damar on July 29, 2024

February 19, 2026 (ED DAMAZIN) – A drone strike by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) killed at least one civilian and wounded several others in the strategic border town of Al-Kurmuk, a local official said on Thursday.

The attack, which occurred on Wednesday evening, targeted residential neighbourhoods and disabled a local flour mill, according to a statement from Al-Kurmuk Commissioner Abdel Ati al-Faki.

Al-Faki said that the Sudanese army remains in control of the district in the Blue Nile region and described the current situation as calm. He condemned the joint assault by the RSF and the SPLM-N, a rebel group that has recently coordinated movements with the paramilitary forces in the southeast.

The strike follows a February 3 offensive by the same groups against three locations in the Blue Nile region, including the town of Diem Mansour. Local officials have previously accused Ethiopia of facilitating the passage of these forces through Assosa in the Benishangul-Gumuz region to enter Sudanese territory.

Diem Mansour, located 17 km (10.5 miles) south of Al-Kurmuk, is viewed as a critical buffer zone. Military analysts warn that its fall could jeopardize the army’s hold on Al-Kurmuk itself. The commissioner had earlier warned of a buildup of rebel and paramilitary fighters south of the town.

Al-Kurmuk has historically been a flashpoint in Sudan’s decades of internal conflict. It changed hands several times between government forces and the SPLM during the civil war that preceded the 2005 peace deal, underscoring its strategic importance on the frontier with Ethiopia.