By David Yeh
The nearly three-year conflict in Sudan has resulted in widespread civilian suffering, including mass killings, ethnic cleansing, forced displacement, and the destruction of essential infrastructure. While local armed actors, particularly the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), have carried out these atrocities, emerging evidence indicates that external states have materially enabled these crimes. Specifically, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Ethiopia are implicated in facilitating military logistics that sustain RSF operations.
Investigative flight tracking, corroborated reporting, and analysis of logistical networks suggest that repeated UAE-linked cargo flights have utilized Ethiopian military airbases to transport heavy military equipment, potentially in violation of international law. Recent developments, including the UAE’s withdrawal from its Bosaso Airport base in Puntland, Somalia, and the evacuation of personnel via Ethiopian Airlines aircraft, suggest a strategic recalibration of UAE operations in the Horn of Africa while maintaining indirect support for armed groups in Sudan.
This report analyzes these activities, examines the legal frameworks governing state responsibility, and presents actionable recommendations for sanctions, investigation, and accountability.
Background: The Conflict in Sudan
Sudan’s war, which escalated in April 2023, is characterized by intense urban and rural combat between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary RSF. The RSF has been implicated in systematic human rights violations, including summary executions, widespread sexual violence, and targeted attacks against civilian populations in Darfur and other regions. United Nations reports and independent investigations have documented thousands of civilian casualties and the displacement of millions, constituting potential crimes against humanity under international law.
The continuation of the conflict is heavily influenced by the RSF’s operational capacity, which has been bolstered by external support from foreign states, including the UAE. UAE logistics networks, previously centered in locations such as Bosaso Airport in Puntland, have provided critical infrastructure for moving personnel, heavy equipment, and weapons.
UAE Operations in Puntland and Regional Recalibration
Recent reporting indicates that the UAE is withdrawing its military presence from Bosaso Airport in Puntland. The UAE Air Force C-130 transport aircraft stationed there has departed for the UAE, and an Ethiopian Airlines Bombardier DHC-8-400 (reg. ET-ARN) appears to have facilitated the evacuation of foreign personnel and mercenaries associated with the base. With a capacity exceeding 71 personnel, this evacuation underscores the scale of UAE operations in Somalia.[1]
Sources suggest that internal strategic considerations may be influencing this withdrawal. Speculation points to potential shifts in leadership or operational control in the UAE, possibly motivated by reputational and security risks arising from the UAE’s involvement in regional conflicts, including Sudan. While current leadership under Mohammed bin Zayed (MBZ) may resist immediate changes, observers warn that these developments could presage a broader realignment of UAE regional strategy.[2]
The Bosaso withdrawal may increase UAE reliance on Ethiopian airspace and infrastructure for logistical operations. Ethiopia’s role as a hub for military transport flights, particularly high-capacity cargo planes such as the Antonov An-124, has already facilitated the movement of military hardware potentially destined for Sudanese armed groups. This consolidation underscores the continued strategic importance of Ethiopia in sustaining operations that may constitute aiding and abetting war crimes.[3]
Documented UAE-Ethiopia Flight Operations
Investigative tracking has identified repeated flights of an Antonov An-124 cargo aircraft operated by a UAE-based company into Ethiopia. Between January 3 and January 17, at least four flights were recorded between Abu Dhabi and Harar Meda airbase, Ethiopia’s primary military installation. One flight continued onward to Addis Ababa’s international airport before departing to Europe and Asia.[4]
The aircraft is among the largest military transport planes in the world, capable of transporting armored vehicles, drones, fighter jet components, and other heavy military equipment. Analysis of prior flight data indicates that the same aircraft previously conducted multiple sorties between military installations in the Gulf and Israel, before beginning flights to Ethiopia. The pattern suggests intentional logistical planning, with Ethiopia emerging as a critical hub in the region for aircraft capable of delivering large volumes of military hardware.
Investigators have noted similar flight routes have been used to supply armed groups in Sudan and Libya, often with deliberate obfuscation of origin to evade sanctions and international scrutiny.
Geopolitical and Strategic Context
The Horn of Africa and Red Sea corridor have become arenas for competition among Gulf powers, particularly the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Ethiopian territory has reportedly grown in strategic importance following the closure of UAE operations in Somalia and other regional locations. Ethiopia’s provision of airspace access, refueling capabilities, and military infrastructure facilitates UAE logistics, reflecting a broader geopolitical calculation that balances regional influence, economic incentives, and security considerations.
These operations not only support military objectives but also reinforce UAE influence over regional security dynamics. By enabling the RSF to maintain operational capacity, the UAE indirectly shapes the balance of power in Sudan, prolonging conflict and undermining international efforts to stabilize the region.
Alleged Criminal Complicity
International humanitarian law, particularly as codified in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, establishes that states and individuals may bear criminal responsibility for aiding and abetting war crimes if they provide the means or resources, with knowledge of their likely use, to commit such crimes.
Ethiopia’s alleged provision of landing rights, airspace access, and logistical support for high capacity military aircraft linked to the RSF raises prima facie evidence of complicity. The UAE’s orchestration of aircraft operations, supply chains, and personnel further establishes a pattern of deliberate facilitation.
Evidence indicates that dismantled fighter jets, drones, and other weapons systems destined for the RSF have transited through Ethiopia. The cumulative effect of these operations has materially enabled RSF campaigns, which have included indiscriminate attacks on civilians, ethnic cleansing, and destruction of essential infrastructure. These actions, if verified, constitute aiding and abetting war crimes under international law, exposing both states to potential legal liability.
Humanitarian Impact
The facilitation of RSF operations by external states has direct and devastating consequences for civilian populations. By sustaining the RSF’s capacity, UAE and Ethiopia’s alleged involvement prolongs the conflict, resulting in continued civilian casualties, displacement, and destruction of property.
The ongoing provision of military logistics to a group accused of crimes against humanity undermines international humanitarian norms and erodes global mechanisms designed to protect vulnerable populations in conflict zones.
Recommendations
Given the evidence presented, the international community is urged to take the following actions:
1- Independent Investigation: Initiate an impartial, international investigation into the role of UAE linked cargo operations and Ethiopia’s facilitation of RSF logistics, under UN Human Rights Council or ICC auspices.
2- Targeted Sanctions: Impose sanctions on individuals, entities, and aircraft operators involved in transporting military equipment linked to RSF operations, including travel bans and asset freezes.
3- Legal Accountability: Pursue accountability through the International Criminal Court or universal jurisdiction cases in jurisdictions willing to prosecute complicity in war crimes and crimes against humanity.
4- Diplomatic Pressure: Apply coordinated diplomatic pressure on Ethiopia and the UAE to halt the use of military logistics networks that support armed groups committing atrocities.
5- Transparency Measures: Establish rigorous monitoring of airspace and cargo flights in the region to prevent further facilitation of conflict and to ensure compliance with arms embargoes.
Conclusion
The evidence of UAE-linked cargo flights into Ethiopia, coupled with the documented history of RSF atrocities and the recent UAE withdrawal from Bosaso, presents a compelling case that external state actors have materially enabled violations of international law. The repeated use of Ethiopian airbases for high capacity military logistics operations highlights both the strategic importance of the region and the direct consequences for civilian populations in Sudan.
The UAE’s operational shift from Puntland to Ethiopia may alter the logistical landscape but does not diminish the role of external facilitation in sustaining conflict. The international community has a legal and moral obligation to investigate, sanction, and hold accountable states and individuals who facilitate mass atrocities. Failure to act risks reinforcing impunity and undermining international humanitarian law. Only through decisive action can accountability be enforced, and the cycle of violence perpetuated by external facilitation be disrupted.
Endnotes
- Somali Guardian: Somalia Permits UAE Military Exit from Mogadishu after Ethiopian Mediation
- The Guardian: Sudan to cut ties with United Arab Emirates over alleged RSF support
- Critical Threats: Chad Tensions Strain RSF Supply Lines; African DRC Peace Efforts; Fano Merger: Africa File, January 22, 2026
- Middle East Eye: Exclusive: UAE flights linked to Sudan war tracked from Israel to Ethiopia
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