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VISUAL INVESTIGATION
Ethiopia builds secret camp to train Sudan RSF fighters, sources say

The covert site is new evidence of how Sudan's civil war is expanding across the region.

By Giulia Paravicini and Reade Levinson

https://www.reuters.com/investigations/ ... ce=twitter

February 10, 2026


Satellite imagery taken on January 22, 2026 shows a camp with hundreds of tents and an area to the north where trucks come and go in Benishangul-Gumuz, Ethiopia. Source: Vantor

NAIROBI/LONDON - Ethiopia is hosting a secret camp to train thousands of fighters for the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group in neighbouring Sudan, Reuters reporting has found, in the latest sign that one of the world’s deadliest conflicts is sucking in regional powers from Africa and the Middle East.

The camp constitutes the first direct evidence of Ethiopia’s involvement in Sudan’s civil war, marking a potentially dangerous development that provides the RSF a substantial supply of fresh soldiers as fighting escalates in Sudan’s south.

Eight sources, including a senior Ethiopian government official, said the United Arab Emirates financed the camp’s construction and provided military trainers and logistical support to the site, a view also shared in an internal note by Ethiopia’s security services and in a diplomatic cable, reviewed by Reuters.

The news agency could not independently verify UAE involvement in the project or the purpose of the camp. In response to a request for comment, the UAE foreign ministry said it was not a party to the conflict or “in any way” involved in the hostilities.

Sudan’s civil war erupted in 2023 after a power struggle https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/tw ... 025-07-31/ between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule. It has spread famine and been marked by racially-charged https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/fi ... 025-11-07/ atrocities. Millions of refugees have fled https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/wo ... 025-11-11/ to Egypt, Chad, Libya and South Sudan.

Both sides draw strength from international backers, https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/eg ... 026-02-02/ fueling the war and increasing the risk that the fighting spills over into neighbouring countries.

The news agency spoke to 15 sources familiar with the camp's construction and operations, including Ethiopian officials and diplomats, and analyzed satellite imagery of the area. Two Ethiopian intelligence officials and the satellite images provided information that corroborated details contained in the security memo and cable.

The location and scale of the camp and the detailed allegations of the UAE’s involvement have not been previously reported. The images show the extent of the new development, as recently as in the past few weeks, along with construction for a drone ground control station at a nearby airport.

Activity picked up in October at the camp, which is located in the remote western region of Benishangul-Gumuz, near the border with Sudan, satellite images show.

New training area for RSF fighters in Ethiopia

Ethiopia’s government spokesperson, its army and the RSF did not respond to detailed requests for comment about the findings of this story. On January 6, UAE and Ethiopia issued a joint statement that included a call for a ceasefire in Sudan, as well as celebrating ties they said served the defense of each other’s security.

The Sudanese Armed Forces did not respond to a request for comment.

As of early January, 4,300 RSF fighters were undergoing military training at the site and

their logistical and military supplies are being provided by the UAE,

the note by Ethiopia’s security services seen by Reuters read.

Sudan's army has previously accused the UAE of supplying the RSF with weapons, https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-ea ... 025-11-14/ a claim U.N. experts and U.S. lawmakers have found credible.

Abu Dhabi has been a strong supporter of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government from his early days in office in 2018, and the two countries have built a military alliance in recent years.

The camp’s recruits are mainly Ethiopians, but citizens from South Sudan and Sudan, including from the SPLM-N, a Sudanese rebel group that controls territory in Sudan’s neighbouring Blue Nile state, are also present, six officials said. Reuters was unable to independently establish who was at the camp or the terms or conditions of recruitment. A senior leader of the SPLM-N, who declined to be named, denied his forces had a presence in Ethiopia.

The six officials said the recruits are expected to join the RSF battling Sudanese soldiers in Blue Nile, which has emerged as a front in the struggle for control of Sudan. Two of the officials said hundreds had already crossed in recent weeks to support the paramilitaries in Blue Nile.

The internal security note said General Getachew Gudina, the Chief of the Defense Intelligence Department of the Ethiopian National Defense Force, was responsible for setting up the camp. A senior Ethiopian government official as well as four diplomatic and security sources confirmed Getachew’s role in launching the project.

Getachew did not respond to a request for comment.

CONSTRUCTION OF THE CAMP

The camp was carved out of forested land in a district called Menge, about 20 miles (32 km) from the border and strategically located at the intersection of the two countries and South Sudan, according to the satellite imagery and the diplomatic cable.

The first sign of activity in the area began in April, with forest clearing and the construction of metal-roofed buildings in a small area to the north of what is now the area of the camp with tents, where work began in the second half of October.

The diplomatic cable, dated November, described the camp as having a capacity of up to 10,000 fighters, saying activity began in October with the arrival of dozens of Land Cruisers, heavy trucks, RSF units and UAE trainers. Reuters is not revealing the country that wrote the cable, to protect the source.

Two of the officials described seeing trucks with the logo of the Emirati logistics company Gorica Group heading through the town of Asosa and towards the camp in October. Gorica did not respond to a request for comment.

The news agency was able to match elements of the timeframe specified in the diplomatic cable with satellite imagery. Images from Airbus Defence and Space show that after the initial clearing work, tents began filling the area from early November. Multiple diggers are visible in the imagery.


Source: Airbus DS


Source: Airbus DS

An image taken by U.S. space technology firm Vantor on November 24 shows more than 640 tents at the camp, approximately four metres square. Each tent could comfortably house four people with some individual equipment, so the camp could accommodate at least 2,500 people, according to an analysis of the satellite imagery by defense intelligence company Janes.

Janes said it could not confirm the site was military based on their analysis of the imagery.


Source: Vantor

New recruits were spotted travelling to the camp in mid-November, two senior military officials said. On November 17, a column of 56 trucks packed with trainees rumbled through dirt roads of the remote region, the officials, who witnessed the convoys, told Reuters, with each truck holding between 50 and 60 fighters, the officials estimated. Two days later, both officials saw another convoy of 70 trucks carrying soldiers driving in the same direction, they said.

The November 24 image shows at least eighteen large trucks at the site. The vehicles’ size, shape and design match those of models frequently used by the Ethiopian military and its allies to transport soldiers, according to Reuters analysis. The news agency could not independently verify what the trucks carried or establish if they were the same trucks that the military officials saw in the convoys a few days earlier.


Source: Vantor

Development continued in late January, the Vantor images show, including new clearing and digging in the riverbed just north of the main camp and dozens of shipping containers lined around the camp visible in a January 22 image. A senior Ethiopian government official said construction on the camp was ongoing but did not elaborate on future building plans.

An Ethiopian government official said machinery for construction of the training camp, including bulldozers and diggers, was being transported through the nearby town of Asosa every day.


Source: Vantor

ASOSA AIRPORT

Asosa airport, 33 miles (53 km) away from the camp, has also seen new construction since August 2025. Satellite imagery shows a new hangar and paved areas near the runway known as aprons, plus what Wim Zwijnenburg, a military technology expert at the Dutch peace organisation PAX, identified as a UAV ground control station and a satellite antenna. The drone support infrastructure visible in the imagery is similar to setups at two other drone bases in Ethiopia, a Reuters review of available imagery found.


Source: Vantor

A senior Ethiopian government official and one of the senior military officials said the Ethiopian military planned to turn the airport into a drone operation centre, in addition to at least five other drone centres they are aware of across the country.

A diplomatic source said the refurbishment of the airport was part of a wider plan by the Ethiopian military to shift aerial bases towards the country’s Western flank in order to face possible new threats along the border with Sudan and to protect critical infrastructure such as the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

Three regional officials and diplomats said they were concerned about the Menge camp’s proximity to the mega dam, Africa’s largest hydroelectric dam, fearing it may be damaged or targeted if fighting broke out in the area. The new camp is about 63 miles (101 km) away from the dam. The government, which owns the dam, did not respond to a request for comment.

A Western military analyst, a regional security expert and a senior Ethiopian official said construction at the airport was related to the RSF’s increased presence in the area. The analyst and the expert said the airport had become instrumental in supplying the RSF across the border in Sudan.

The senior Ethiopian government official and a regional security analyst said the airport refurbishment had also been paid for by the UAE. Reuters could not independently verify the source of financing for the airport.


Last month, the UAE’s Ministry of Defence published photos on X of Major General Staff Pilot Ibrahim Nasser Al Alawi (center front), Commander of the UAE Air Force and Air Defence, sitting next to General Abebaw Tadesse, (far left, with his arms crossed), the deputy chief of Ethiopia’s army, at a military parade in Bishoftu. Screenshot via REUTERS

Months after Abiy rose to power, the UAE pledged https://www.reuters.com/article/busines ... L8N1TH4GJ/ a total of $3 billion in aid and investments in a sign of confidence and support to the newly appointed leader, with $1 billion destined to Ethiopia's central bank aimed at easing the country’s severe foreign currency shortage.

In 2025, the UAE and Ethiopian air forces signed a memorandum of understanding to develop both nations’ air and defence capabilities, according to news reports at the time.

Additional reporting by Alexander Dziadosz, Nafisa Eltahir and Ahmed Shalaby in Cairo. Editing by Silvia Aloisi, Sarah Cahlan and Frank Jack Daniel



Reade Levinson

Thomson Reuters

Investigative reporter specializing in using data analysis and open source materials to break news and expose wrongdoing. Written about police violence and failings of the U.S. justice system; business interests of Myanmar military family members; and the largely unregulated U.S. trade in donated human bodies. Honors include a Loeb Award, Scripps Howard Award, Shadid Award for Journalism Ethics and Goldsmith Prize finalist, among others.

መደረ ቀዳማይ ሚኒስተር ብልጽግና ብዓይኒ ኢትዮጵያውያን

@shabait

10 Feb. 2026

“ባይቶ ወከልቲ ህዝቢ ኢትዮጵያ” ብ3 ለካቲት 2026፡ ኣብ ዘካየደሉ፡ መራሒ ጉጅለ ብልጽግና 4 ሰዓታት ዝወሰደ ዲስኩር ኣስሚዑ።

ህዝብን መንግስትን ኤርትራ ዝገበሩልና ደገፍ ወትሩ ዝርሳዕ ኣይኮነን፣

ከም ኣብ እዋን ጸልማት፡ ኣብ እዋን ጸገምካ’ውን ጽላሎትካ ከይተረፈ’ዩ ዝጠልመካ። ህዝብን መንግስትን ኤርትራ ግና፡ ኣብ’ቲ ከቢድ እዋን ጸገምና ምሳና ደው ዝበሉ ሓቀኛ መሓዙት’ዮም፣

ሰራዊትና ብዝወረዶ ሃንደበታዊ መጥቃዕቲ፡ ዕርቃኑ ወጺኡ ናብ መሬት ኤርትራ ምስ ኣተወ፡ ህዝቢ ኤርትራ ከዲንዎ፡ ኣብሊዕዎ፡ ኣስትይዎን ኣዕጢቕዎን። ነዚ ከኣ፡ ህዝቢ ኢትዮጵያ ክፈልጦን ከኽብሮን ኣለዎ።

. . .ወዘተ እናበለ ብኣቚጸላጻሊ ሓረጋት ንህዝቢ፡ መንግስትን ሰራዊትን ኤርትራ ይንእድ ከምዘይነበረ ድማ፡ ኣብዚ ናይ ሕጂ መደረ - ልሳኑ ብምቕያር፡ ንጠንቂ ናይቲ ድሒሩ ኣብ መንጎ ኢትዮጵያን ኤርትራን ዝተፈጥረ ጸገም ብዝምልከት፡ ብሓሶት ዝተተኽተኸ፡ ኣብ ሚድያታት መዋረዲኡ ኮይኑ ዝቐነየ ዕሸላዊ መግለጺ ኣቕሪቡ።

ንሎሚ፡ ኢትዮጵያውያንን ኢትዮጵያውያን ሚድያታትን ዝበልዎ ነቕርበልኩም።

ቀዳማይ ሚኒስተር ብልጽግና ኣብ መደረኡ፡

ኣብ መንጎ ኢትዮጵያን ኤርትራን ዘሎ ጸገም፡ ሕጂ መንግስቲ ኢትዮጵያ ንጉዳይ ቀይሕ ባሕሪ ብምልዓሉ ዝተኸስተ ኣይኰነን። ካብ ምፍጣር ኤርትራ ኣትሒዝካ ዝነበረ’ዩ። ኣብ እዋን ውግእ ትግራይን ድሕሪ ስምምዕ ፕሪቶርያን ድማ፡ እቲ ምቅሕሓር ብኢሱ።

ክብል ንኤርትራን ሰራዊት ኤርትራን ብዘይ ሕንከት ወንጂሉ።

ብዛዕባ’ቲ ጉዳይ ኣቤቱታ መንግስቲ ኢትዮጵያ ንምቕራብ ድማ፡ ተኸታቲሎም ሚኒስተራት ጉዳያት ወጻኢ ንዝነበሩ ኣቶ ገዱ ኣንዳርጋቸውን ኣቶ ደመቀ መኰነንን ናብ ኤርትራ ከምዝለኣኸ ብምጥቃስ፡

ንማዕተቦም እንተመስኪሮም፡ ነዚ ኣይርስዕዎን’ዮም

ኢሉ።

ካብ 2019 ክሳብ 2020 ሚኒስተር ጉዳያት ወጻኢ፣ ካብ ሕዳር 2020 ክሳብ ሰነ 2022 ድማ

ኣማኻሪ ሃገራዊ ድሕነት ቀዳማይ ሚኒስተር

ኰይኑ ዘገልገለ ኣቶ ገዱ፡ ድሒሩ ብዝተፈጥረ ፖለቲካዊ ጽርዲ፡ ካብ ኢትዮጵያ ወጺኡ ኣብ ሕቡራት መንግስታት ኣመሪካ’ዩ ዝነብር ዘሎ።

ነቲ ስሙ ከም ምስክርነት ብምጥቃስ ዝተዋህበ ጠቐነ ድማ፡

ከማኻ ምስ ሓቂ ዝተባእሰ ምስክር ክትመርጽ ነይሩካ። ኣነ ግን ክምስክር እንተኾይነ፡ ንታሪኽ ዝተርፍ’ዩ’ሞ፡ እቲ ሓቂ’የ ክምስክር

ክብል ብዘየሻሙ መንገዲ ምላሽ ሂቡሉ’ሎ።

ኣቶ ገዱ ኣንዳርጋቸው

ብቐዳምነት፡ ኲናት ትግራይ ድሕሪ ምጅማሩ፡ ኣነ ሚኒስተር ጉዳያት ወጻኢ ከምዝነበርኩን ናይ ተቓውሞ መልእኽትኻ ሒዘ ናብ ኤርትራ ከምእተለኣኽኩን ኣምሲልካ ኣብ ናይ ፓርላማ መደረኻ ዝገለጽካዮ፡ ውጹእ ሓሶት’ዩ። እዚ ቅሉዕ ቅጥፈት ከምዝዀነ ኣነ ጥራይ ዘይኰንኩ፡ ንስኻ ባዕልኻ’ውን ሓሶት ወልፊ ኰይኑካን ነቲ ብሓድሽ መልክዕ ክትፍጽሞ ንዝወጠንካዮ ናይ ጥፍኣት ፕሮጀክት ህዝቢ ኣደናጊርካ ክተረሳስን ይጠቕመኒ’ዩ ኢልካ ሓሲብካን እንተዘይኰይኑ፡ ክልቲኡ ጉዳያት ንማንም ፖለቲካ ኢትዮጵያ ንዝከታተል ብሩህ’ዩ። ኣነ ካብ ሚኒስተር ጉዳያት ወጻኢ ዝተቐየርኩ፡ ጽባሕ ምጅማር ኲናት ትግራይ ማለት 25 ጥሪ 2023 (ብኣቈጻጽራ ኢትዮጵያ) እዩ። መቸም፡ እዚ ትርስዖ ኢኻ ኢሉ ዝጥርጥር የዋህ ጥራይ’ዩ። ሕጂ’ውን ኣብ ልዕሊ ህዝብን ሃገርን ክትፍጽሞ ዝወጠንካ ጥፍኣት ሃልዩ፡ ንምውቓዕ ክትጥቀመሉ ዝደለኻ ነገር እንተዘይሃልዩ፡ ናተይ ናይ ወጻኢ ጉዳይ ሚኒስተርነትን ናይ ኤርትራ መገሻን ፍጹም ዘራኽብ የብሎምን።

ኣቶ ገዱ ኣስዒቡ፦

ኣብ’ቲ ናይ ፓርላማ ዘረባኻ ንእሽቶ ሓቅነት ዘለዎ፡ እቲ ናተይ ናብ ኤርትራ ምኻድ’ዩ። እቲ ዕለት ብልክዕ’ኳ እንተዘይዘከርክዎ፡ ኣብ ፈለማ ጥሪ 2013 (2022 ዓ.ም)፡ ምስ ሓደ በዓል-ስልጣን ሚኒስትሪ ጉዳያት ወጻኢ፡ መልእኽትኻ ናብ ፕረዚደንት ኢሳይያስ ከብጽሕ ልኢኽካኒ። ንጽባሒቱ ድማ ንእሽቶ ናይ ኮንትራት ነፋሪት ጌረ ኣስመራ በጺሐ ተመሊሰ። ትሕዝቶ ናይ’ቲ መልእኽቲ፡ ናብ መሪሕነት፡ ህዝብን መንግስትን ኤርትራ ምስጋና ንምብጻሕ፣ ከምኡ’ውን ሰናይ ዝምድና ኤርትራን ኢትዮጵያን ዘይደልዩ ናይ ወጻኢ ሓይልታት፡ ብመገዲ ዝተፈላለያ ኣህጉራውያን ውድባትን ሚድያታትን ምስ ጥሕሰት ሰብኣዊ መሰላት ብምትሕሓዝ ሰፊሕ ናይ ጸለመ ዘመተ ከፊቶምልና ስለዘለዉ፡ ብሓባር ንምክልኻሉን ንምምካቱን ዘኽእል ሓሳብ ንምትሕልላፍ እምበር፡ ክሲ ይኹን ኣቤቱታ ንምቕራብ ኣይነበረን። ኣብ’ቲ ኣጋጣሚ፡ ፕረዚደንት ኢሳይያስ ዝተዛረበና እንተነይሩ፡ ‘ዘድሊ ጥንቃቐ ክግበር፡ ኩላትና ንታሕተዎት ጽፍሕታት መምርሒ ከነመሓላልፍ። ብዝተረፈ፡ ኣነን ኣቢን ብዝተሰማማዕናዮ መሰረት፡ ገና ብዙሕ ዝስራሕ ዕዮ ኣሎ።’ ዝብል’ዩ ነይሩ። በዚ ድማ ዝርርብና ብጽቡቕ ናይ ምርድዳእ መንፈስ ዛዚምና ናብ ሃገርና ተመሊስና። ንጽባሒቱ፡ ስልኪ ደዊለ፡ ብዛዕባ’ቲ ምስ ፕረዚደንት ኢሳይያስ ዝነበረና ርክብ ጸብጻብ ኣቕሪበልካ። ኣነ ዝፈልጦ ሓቂ እዚ’ዩ።

ክብል ኣነጺሩ።

ኢትዮጵያዊ ጋዜጠኛ

ብሓሶት፡ ምድንጋር፡ ጃህራን ፈኸራን ዝተሰነየ ውዕሎ ኣቢ ኣሕመድ ኣብ ፓርላማ፡ ሓድሽ ነገር ዘይብሉን ዘይቅርዑይን ኰይኑ፡ ከም’ቲ ልሙድ’ዩ ተዛዚሙ። ብስእነት ሰላምን ፍርህን ተዋሒጡ ምህላዉ፡ ካብ ኩነታቱ ብቐሊሉ ምግንዛብ ይከኣል። ናይ ሎሚ ሓሶት ብፍላይ፡ መዳርግቲ ዘይብሉ’ዩ። ኣቢ ብዛዕባ ዕቤት ቁጠባ ኢትዮጵያ ንዘልዓሎ ምስ እንርኢ፡ መቓልሕ ናይ’ቲ ለቘታ ሓሶቱን ባዶሽ ዲስኩሩን ምዃን ማለት ስለዝኸውን፡ ምግዳፉ ይምረጽ። ምኽንያቱ፡ ክንዲ ፍረ ኣድሪ ሓቅነት ስለዘይርከቦ። ብኣንጻሩ፡ ነታ ሃገር ናብ ዓዘቕቲ ይሸማ ምህላዉ፡ ኣብ ባይታ ዘሎ መርትዖታት ዝምስክሮ’ዩ። ካልእ ምውሳኽ ኣየድልን። እቲ ብዛዕባ ኤርትራ ዘልዓሎ’ውን እንተዀነ፡ መዳርግቲ ዘይርከቦ ከሓዲ ምዃኑ ንዝፈልጥ፡ ብዙሕ ዘስደምም ጉዳይ ኣይኰነን። ኣብ መጽሓፍ ቅዱስ ንትዕግስቲ ምስ እዮብ ምትእስሳር ከምዝከኣል፡ ኣብ’ዛ ዓለምና’ውን ንክሕደት ካብ ኣቢ ኣሕመድ ንላዕሊ ዝግለጸላ ሰብ ክህሉ ኣይክእልን። ኰታ፡ ክሕደት መግለጺት መንነቱ’ያ። ኣብ ዝሓለፈ 8 ዓመታት፡ ኣቢ ተደጋጋሚ ክሕደት’ዩ ፈጺሙ። ተዘርዚሩ ዝውዳእ ኣይኰነን። ‘ብኤርትራን ብሌን ዓይነይን ዋዛ የለን’ ዝበለና፡ ባዕሉ ኣቢ ኣሕመድ’ዩ። ኣብ መንጐይን መንጐ ፕረዚደንት ኢሳይያስን ንፋስ’ኳ ክኣቱ ኣይክእልን’ዩ፣ ንኤርትራ ክማጐተላ’የ፣ ኤርትራ እንተዘይትህሉ ነይራ፡ ኣብ ልዕሌና እንታይኰን ምወረደ? ብምባል ፓርላማ ብጣቕዒት ከምዝናወጽ ከምዘይገበረ፡ ሎሚ ኣንጻር ኤርትራ ኩምራ ሓሶት ምዝራብ ንመን ንምእማን’ዩ?

ኢትዮጵያዊ ናይ ፖለቲካ ተንታኒ

ትማሊ ዝተዛረቦ ሎሚ ዘይደግም፣ ኣበየ መድረኹ ቅጥፈትን ሓሶትን ክድርድር፣ ቅድሚ ሕጂ ዝተዛረቦ ሎሚ እናፍረሰ፡ ዝሰምዑኒ፣ ዝግንዘቡንን ዘመዛዝኑንን ዜጋታት እንታይ ኰን ይብሉኒ? ኢሉ ዘይሓስብ’ዩ። ዓበይቲ ሓሶታት ምሕሳው፣ ዓበይቲ ክሕደታት ምፍጻምን ዕለታዊ ምጭብርባርን ስርሐይ ኢሉ ዝሓዘን ካብ መንግስታዊ ስርዓት ዝወጸን ናይ መወዳእታ ውርደተኛ፡ ኣብ ኢትዮጵያ ኣብ መንበር ስልጣን ዝተዀየጠ ዘሎ ኣይመስለንን። ነፍሲ-ወከፍ ናይ ኣደባባይ መደረታቱን ናይ ፓርላማ ውዕሎኡን፡ ቀንዲ መለለዪኡ - ሓሶት፡ ክሕደትን ንውሪን’ዩ። ነዚ ኣረሜን ሽፍታ ንምግላጽ ቃላት ይሓጽሩኒ።

ሓደ ኢትዮጵያዊ ምሁር

ኢትዮጵያ ኣብ ኲናት ሓድሕድ ክትኣቱ መንገዲ ኣብ ምጽራግ እጃም ኣንበሳ ሓላፍነት ዝስከም ኣቢ’ዩ። ኣብ ዝሓለፈ ዓመታት በትረ ስልጣኑ ንምጽናዕ፡ ነቲ ኣብ ኢትዮጵያ ዝተኸስተ ፖለቲካዊ ምስግጋር ጨውዩ፡ ቀላሲ ናይ’ቲ ዝተፈጥረ ፖለቲካዊ ቅልውላው ብምዃን፡ ንኢትዮጵያ ኣብ ተደጋጋሚ ውሽጣዊ ግጭት ከምእትሽመም ዝገበረ’ዩ። ዘስምዖ መደረታትን በተን ዝቈጻጸረን ማዕከናት ዜና ዝጋዋሕ መርዛም ትሕዝቶን ዘካይዶ ቀጻሊ ፕሮፖጋንዳን፡ ነዚ ዘረጋግጽ’ዩ። እዚ ሃዋህው’ዚ፡ ንህዝባዊ ናዕቢ ዝደፋፍእ ጥራይ ዘይኰነ ፖለቲካዊ ቅቡልነት ክረክብ ባይታ ኣጣጢሑ’ዩ። እቲ ሓቂ እዚ ስለዝዀነ፡ ሕጂ ከም ጲላጦስ ኢዱ ክሓጽብ እንተፈተነ፡ ካብ ሓላፍነትን ተሓታትነትን ከምልጥ ከቶ ኣይክእልን’ዩ።

Sudan pushes ahead with $1.5b Pakistan arms deal amid worsening humanitarian crisis

Olamilekan Okebiorun

https://africa.businessinsider.com/loca ... an/stcy2qm

09 February 2026

Sudan’s military authorities, under General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, are pushing ahead with a $1.5 billion arms agreement with Pakistan, even as the war-torn nation grapples with a deepening humanitarian crisis that has displaced millions and strained regional stability across northeast Africa.


War-torn Sudan pushes ahead with $1.5b Pakistan arms deal amid worsening humanitarian crisis

• The purchase focuses on light attack aircraft, drones, and defense systems to reclaim battlefield momentum.

• Severe casualties and displacement resulting from the conflict have escalated the humanitarian crisis in the region.

• Questions arise regarding funding for this acquisition amidst Sudan's strained war-time economy and regional diplomatic tensions.

• Sudan's military plans to procure $1.5 billion in assets from Pakistan to rebuild air capabilities amid ongoing civil conflict.

The proposed deal comes as Sudan remains locked in a civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a conflict that erupted in April 2023 and has since triggered one of the world’s gravest humanitarian emergencies.

Military push amid humanitarian strain

The planned acquisition comes weeks before the United States led an international effort to mobilise aid for Sudan, with donor pledges expected to total about $1.5 billion, including a $500 million commitment from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

According to Military Africa, the arms deal includes 10 Karakoram-8 (K-8) light attack aircraft, more than 200 unmanned aerial vehicles, and upgraded air defence systems, reflecting Khartoum’s efforts to regain air superiority after months of contested control of the skies.

The K-8 aircraft, jointly developed by Pakistan and China, serves as both an advanced trainer and a light combat platform. Its lower operating costs compared with high-end fighter jets make it suitable for sustained close air support operations.

Beyond light attack aircraft and unmanned systems, the deal could also include more advanced assets. Sources said this may involve Super Mushshak primary trainer aircraft and the JF-17 Thunder multirole fighter.

Drones reshape the battlefield

The drone package is expected to be one of the most consequential elements of the agreement.

With more than 200 units under consideration, the SAF appears intent on countering the RSF’s effective deployment of small, agile drones that have challenged the army’s conventional advantages.


Sudan has accused the United Arab Emirates of supplying the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a claim Abu Dhabi denies

Regional tensions and funding questions

However, it remains unclear how Sudan will fund the acquisition after nearly two years of war battered the economy, triggering mass displacement, food shortages, currency weakness and declining state revenues.

Saudi Arabia’s close defense relationship with Pakistan may have helped facilitate the deal, following recent agreements with Sudan that include a $10 million water infrastructure grant and plans to refine Sudanese gold.

Meanwhile, war-torn Sudan has accused the United Arab Emirates of supplying the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a claim that Abu Dhabi denies.

United Nations experts and some U.S. lawmakers have previously described the allegations as credible.

The UAE maintains that its involvement is strictly humanitarian, citing more than $4.24 billion in assistance to Sudan over the past decade, including nearly $800 million since the conflict began.

The procurement also highlights Pakistan’s expanding role as a defence exporter across Africa and the Middle East, as governments facing rising security threats increasingly seek cost-effective military partnerships.

Fiyameta wrote: ↑

Today, 15:15

Oh noooo

Abiy’s mouthpiece Horn Review just hit “publish” at light speed with an AI Article, to deny the Reuters investigation about UAE-puppet Ethiopia/PP is training the RSF.

Zmeselo wrote: ↑

Today, 15:28

Fiyameta wrote: ↑

Today, 15:15

Oh noooo

Abiy’s mouthpiece Horn Review just hit “publish” at light speed with an AI Article, to deny the Reuters investigation about UAE-puppet Ethiopia/PP is training the RSF.

Fiyameta wrote: ↑

Today, 15:49

Who can prevent Sudan from crossing the border into Ethiopia to carryout military actions against the RSF militia holed up in the Benishangul-Gumuz region?

The Ethiopian dam that is located a stone's throw away from the Sudanese border is at a greater risk than ever. Someone needs to build Noah's Ark.

With this evidence now, Sudan should drag Ethiopia to the ICC.