India, May 17 -- Drone warfare has become the deadliest threat to civilians in Sudan's conflict, and both the military and the rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are being supplied by a number of countries in the West Asia and beyond, experts say.

"Armed drones have now become by far and away the leading cause of civilian deaths," or over 80 per cent of conflict-related deaths, United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk said this week, calling for measures to prevent their transfer to Sudan.

Drones killed at least 880 civilians between January and April. The war in Sudan began in April 2023 and has killed at least 59,000 people, displaced some 13 million and pushed parts of the country into famine.

In recent weeks, the RSF has ...