Drones in the Sudan war
Sudan’s civil war has become one of the world’s most drone-intensive conflicts, with both the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces using armed UAVs and imported systems.
What drones are documented here?
The UN confirms both sides’ expanding drone use and its civilian impact. Named platform attribution comes mainly from conflict-monitoring research, so every Sudan drone page carries a reported-status label unless a stronger source emerges.
| Drone | Manufacturer | Role | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mohajer-6 Mohajer 6 | Iranian defense industry | Reusable armed intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance UAV. | Confirmed system use |
| Bayraktar TB2 TB2 · Bayraktar | Baykar | Medium-altitude long-endurance armed ISR UAV. | Confirmed system use |
| Wing Loong II Wing Loong 2 · Yilong-2 | Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) / Chengdu Aircraft Corporation | Export medium-altitude long-endurance armed reconnaissance UAV. | Reported attribution |
| Ababil-3 Ababil 3 · Ababil-T | Iranian defense industry | Iranian-origin reconnaissance and attack UAV family. | Reported attribution |
| Zajil-3 Zajil 3 | Sudanese military-industrial production; public manufacturer attribution is incomplete | Sudanese armed UAV identified in open-source conflict reporting. | Reported attribution |
| YIHA-III YIHA III loitering munition | Turkish defense industry attribution in open-source reporting; exact manufacturer requires verification | Loitering munition identified in Sudan conflict inventories. | Reported attribution |
How the evidence should be interpreted
This page maps named platforms to the conflict based on the sources below. It does not turn a manufacturer’s product page into proof of a particular battlefield event, and it does not treat every military statement as independently verified. The individual drone pages explain exactly what each source establishes.
The word “used” can mean different things: a platform may be fielded by a combatant, supplied to a combatant, identified in debris, or named in an official inventory. Those are different evidence levels, which is why this page shows the status beside every system.
Conflict timeline
April 2023–present
Sudan war drone FAQ
What drones are documented in the Sudan war?
Mohajer-6, Bayraktar TB2, Wing Loong II, Ababil-3, Zajil-3, YIHA-III are the named systems in this first-release evidence set. The list is not a claim that these are the only drones present in the conflict.
How reliable is drone identification in the Sudan war?
Reliability varies. Official releases and manufacturer records support confirmed entries; open-source and monitoring reports support reported entries. Incident-level claims need separate verification.
Conflict sources
- UN Human Rights Office on Sudan drone use (official)
- ACLED analysis of Sudan’s drone war (monitoring)
- Critical Threats inventory of foreign drones in Sudan (monitoring)