El FASHER – The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) carried out their first successful airdrop over El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, in the early hours of Monday, September 29, 2025, marking a breakthrough in the prolonged standoff with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The operation, the first of its kind since April, is being described by analysts as a potential game-changer for both the military and the besieged civilian population.
According to military sources, the mission was conducted around 4:30 a.m. local time and proceeded without incident. A warplane managed to deliver crates containing food, medicine, and cash to the headquarters of the Sixth Infantry Division in Central El Fasher. The supplies are intended not to reinforce the army but also to provide much-needed humanitarian relief to the city’s trapped residents.
The resumption of air operations comes after nearly six months in which the Sudanese military was unable to reach the city from the air. In April, one of its planes was downed near El Fasher, an incident claimed by the RSF, which at the time announced it had acquire advanced air-defense systems. Since then, the city has remained under an increasingly suffocating siege.
For many inside El Fasher, the sight of a military aircraft overhead for the first time in months was a dramatic and symbolic moment. Residents reportedly erupted in cheers, while soldiers fired into the air in celebration. The return of an army plane to the skies of El Fasher was seen by civilians as a message that the city has not been abandoned.
The humanitarian stakes could not be higher. Around 260,000 people are trapped in El Fasher under what aid officials describe as one of the harshest blockades of the war. The RSF has tightened its grip in recent months, digging additional trenches around the city and resisting calls from the United Nations and other international bodies to lift the siege. Food and medical shortages have left thousands struggling to survive, with hospitals warning of imminent collapse without external assistance.
Military sources emphasized that Monday’s drop was designed to help alleviate these dire conditions. Deliveries of medicine, food, and cash are expected to stabilize parts of the city’s healthcare system and support families who have endured months of deprivation. Observers noted that beyond the immediate relief, the airdrop also restored a sense of hope among residents who had been cut off from the outside world.
Strategically, the development is equally significant. Analysts argue that the ability of the army to conduct air operations over El Fasher could alter the balance of power in North Darfur. Sustained air access would allow the SAF to bolster its troops and allied forces within the city, challenging the RSF’s strategy isolation and potentially opening the way for more effective counteroffensives.
The RSF has not issued any statement in response to the airdrop. This silence has led some observers to question whether the group’s air-defense capabilities have weakened or whether the army took advantage of a tactical gap to execute the operation. Either way, the success of the mission suggests a shift in the dynamics of the siege, raising the prospect of further army operations in the days ahead.
Whether this was an isolated breakthrough or the start of a sustained air campaign remains uncertain. For civilians inside El Fasher, however, the successful airdrop represented more than a military maneuver, it was a lifeline. It brough supplies that could keep thousands alive and renewed the belief that relief, however limited, is still possible even under the most suffocating conditions of war.
