Explosion rocks Sudan’s capital; police blame war-era landmine

A large explosion was heard on Friday (April 3, 2026) in the military-controlled Sudanese capital Khartoum, an AFP journalist and witnesses said, with authorities blaming a landmine left behind from the war.

Khartoum has seen relative calm since the Army, which has been locked in conflict with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2023, regained control of the capital last year.

An AFP journalist in Omdurman, Khartoum’s twin city just across the Nile, reported hearing one blast from the direction of central Khartoum.

A witness in the city centre also described a “single, loud explosion” but said there were no immediate signs of fire or rising smoke.

Other residents across the capital confirmed hearing the blast.

Sudanese police said in a statement that the explosion occurred in the Burri neighbourhood in eastern Khartoum and was caused by a landmine, a remnant of the war, which detonated after “some residents set fire to waste” in the area.

Police added that no casualties or material damage was recorded.

Burri lies near several strategic and military sites, including the military’s General Command headquarters and Khartoum International Airport.

The United Nations has previously warned that Khartoum is “heavily contaminated by unexploded ordnance”, reporting that landmines have been found across Khartoum.

Many of the unexploded devices were left behind by RSF fighters who took control of the city in the early days of the war.

After the army recaptured the capital last March, the RSF carried out drone strikes targeting military bases and civilian infrastructure in the capital.

But none have been reported in recent months, and the city has regained a sense of normality, with 1.7 million displaced people returning.

Outside Khartoum, drone attacks by both the army and the RSF have continued to disrupt daily life, with some strikes killing dozens at once.

This week, the United Nations said drone strikes had killed more than 500 civilians between January and mid-March, pointing to “the devastating impact of high-tech and relatively cheap weapons in populated areas”.

The wider conflict, now approaching its three-year mark, has killed tens of thousands of people, forced more than 11 million from their homes and created what the UN describes as the world’s largest displacement and hunger crises.