In brief
A military plane crash in a residential area of Khartoum resulted in at least 46 fatalities, further compounding the destruction from Sudan's prolonged civil war. Local officials reported injuries to multiple civilians as the military investigates the incident amid escalating violence in the region.
The crash of a military aircraft in a residential part of Sudan’s capital Khartoum has tragically taken the lives of at least 46 people, regional officials reported on Wednesday, intensifying the suffering of a city already battered by nearly three years of civil conflict. This incident marks one of the most fatal aviation accidents in Sudan's recent statistics, according to the International Civil Aviation Organization, a branch of the United Nations.The state government in Khartoum confirmed that the deceased include both passengers aboard the Antonov cargo plane and residents on the ground, highlighting the catastrophe's widespread impact. Late Tuesday evening, the aircraft went down shortly after taking off from the Wadi Seidna air base, located just outside the capital. The Sudanese military has yet to determine the crash's cause and has not disclosed specifics regarding the passengers involved.The crash has resulted in at least ten injuries within the Al-Thawra neighborhood, directly linked to the crash site. Among the injured are two young children, as reported by the state health ministry. Khartoum has been ravaged by street battles, stemming from an intense conflict between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (R.S.F.), resulting in tens of thousands of deaths and forcing approximately 11 million citizens to abandon their homes. The skyline of the city now stands in ruins, bearing the scars of prolonged violence.In recent weeks, fighting has escalated, contributing to hundreds more casualties, with warnings from hunger authorities indicating that around 24.6 million people, nearly half of Sudan's population, face increased risk of famine.The air base remains significant to the military's ongoing campaign to regain control of Khartoum, being a launch point for drone operations against R.S.F. militants who have seized parts of the capital. The military has previously employed the base for cargo flights, facilitating the transport of military supplies.In a related development, the R.S.F. claimed responsibility for downing another military aircraft over Nyala, a city located in South Darfur, southwest of Sudan—though the Sudanese military has not commented on this assertion. Earlier, in October, another military cargo plane crashed in north Darfur, resulting in fatalities among military personnel.Sudan has been no stranger to aviation tragedies, even before the current war. Notably, incidents such as the 2003 crash of a Sudan Airways flight that led to 116 deaths have marked its troubled aviation history.
