Sudan Military Plane Crashes Into Residential Area, 46 Dead

A Sudanese military transport aircraft crashed into a residential area near the Wadi Seidna air base on Tuesday night, killing at least 46 people and injuring 10 others, according to the Khartoum regional government’s media office.

The aircraft, reportedly en route to the Red Sea city of Port Sudan—the headquarters of Sudan’s military-backed government—went down near one of the army’s largest military hubs in Omdurman, northwest of the capital Khartoum.

While the military has not confirmed reports that high-ranking officers were onboard, a military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that a technical malfunction may have caused the crash.

Residents described hearing a powerful explosion, followed by thick plumes of smoke. Several homes were damaged in the impact, and the crash triggered widespread power outages in the area. Emergency response teams rushed injured civilians, including children, to a nearby hospital, as confirmed by the army-aligned health ministry.

The crash comes amid Sudan’s ongoing civil war between the military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The conflict, which erupted into full-scale fighting in 2023, has devastated urban centers and led to accusations of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including mass rapes and ethnically motivated killings, particularly in the Darfur region.

On Monday, the RSF claimed responsibility for downing a military aircraft in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur. In recent months, the military has made territorial gains against the RSF in Khartoum and other regions.