Sudan airstrike hits plane allegedly carrying foreign mercenaries

The Sudanese Air Force has destroyed an Emirati aircraft reportedly carrying Colombian mercenaries as it landed at Nyala Airport, controlled by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in South Darfur.  

According to Sudanese state TV and a military source quoted by AFP, the aircraft was “bombed and completely destroyed,” killing at least 40 on board. 

Neither the Sudanese Army, the RSF, nor the United Arab Emirates commented. The exact model of the aircraft destroyed is also unknown. 

UAE accused of arming RSF rebels 

Khartoum has repeatedly accused the UAE of arming the RSF, including with Chinese-made drones delivered via Nyala. The UAE denies involvement, despite multiple reports by UN experts and satellite images showing drone activity at the airport. 

Footage filmed by one of the Colombian mercenaries fighting alongside the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) shows a Chinese-made CH-95 UCAV at Nyala Airport in Sudan’s South Darfur State . https://t.co/Ob9ZQdcia5 pic.twitter.com/FzsHCqLEbB— Rich Tedd (@AfriMEOSINT) August 3, 2025

Sudan’s government also accused the UAE of funding and deploying Colombian mercenaries to fight alongside the RSF, claiming to possess documents as proof. The Joint Forces, a pro-army coalition in Darfur, said more than 80 Colombian fighters were spotted in El Fasher, the last state capital in Darfur still under military control. 

Colombian nationals, often ex-soldiers or guerrillas, have been recruited by the UAE in past conflicts, including in Yemen. Their presence in Darfur was confirmed by UN experts in 2024. 

Colombian President condemns mercenarism 

In response to the reports, Colombian President Gustavo Petro condemned the involvement of his country’s nationals in Sudan’s war and issued a call for legislative action. “I have requested an emergency vote on a bill banning mercenarism. It is a form of human trafficking where men are turned into commodities for killing,” he posted on X. 

Petro also ordered Colombia’s ambassador in Egypt to verify the reported death toll and initiate efforts to repatriate the bodies of the deceased. “So much war was wanted inside Colombia that, once weakened at home, it is now sought abroad where no one has harmed us,” he added. 

Colombia’s foreign ministry had previously expressed regret in December 2024 over the participation of some of its citizens in the Sudanese conflict. 

The strike is the latest escalation in Sudan’s civil war, now in its third year. Since April 2023, Sudan has been embroiled in a bloody conflict between the army of General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane, de facto ruler of Sudan since his coup in 2021, and his former deputy, General Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, commanding the RSF. The conflict has killed tens of thousands and displaced over 13 million people. 

In February 2025, a Sudanese military aircraft carrying senior military personnel crashed while trying to take off from an airbase in the northeast of the country. At least 46 passengers and crew members are reported to have died in the accident, including Major-General Bahr Ahmed, a high-ranking commander in the Sudanese Army. 

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