KHARTOUM: A paramilitary drone attack hit the family home of an army-aligned commander accused of atrocities, killing nine of his relatives, two sources within the militia he leads said on Sunday.

The sources said the strike, which occurred at about 22:00 local time (2000 GMT) on Saturday, hit the family house of Abu Aqla Kaykal, commander of the Sudan Shield Forces, in the village of al-Kaheli, around 40 kilometres (25 miles) east of Wad Madani, the capital of Al-Jazirah state in central Sudan.

They blamed the attack on the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which have been at war with Sudan’s army since April 2023.

Among those killed were two of Kaykal’s brothers, Azzam and Haidar, a relative, Siddiq Bakhit — a commander in the Sudan Shield Forces — and six children from the family, the sources said. The house and several neighbouring homes were also damaged, they added.

Kaykal previously served as the RSF’s commander in Al-Jazirah state, where he has been accused of besieging entire villages.

He defected to the army’s side in October 2024, after which his fighters joined military operations that helped the army recapture key areas of central Sudan, including Al-Jazirah and the capital Khartoum.

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2026