Iran Sends Drones to Sudan; Khamenei Eyes Uranium in North Africa

On March 27, Iran's Revolutionary Guards sent a shipment of weapons and military equipment to Sudan using a Boeing 747 of Fars Air Qeshm Airlines. The shipment consisted mainly of drones and was transferred to the Sudanese army for use in the country's civil war.

According to a report by the opposition TV channel Iran International, Iran has tried to expand its influence in Sudan in the past. During the reign of Omar al-Bashir, who is accused of war crimes, and Tehran used Sudan as a route to transfer weapons to Hamas.

In 2014, Israel attacked a weapons factory in Khartoum, which was believed to be linked to the Revolutionary Guards. After the severing of diplomatic relations in 2016, the two countries renewed their relations in the winter of 2024, and since then, Iranian arms shipments to Sudan have increased.

According to the report, Iran has two main targets in Sudan. The first is the exploitation of Sudan's uranium stockpiles to strengthen its nuclear program. The second is to integrate Sudan into the resistance axis in order to establish a new regional front in North Africa. These actions reflect Iran's efforts to expand its military and political influence in the region.

The Iranian airline that flew the shipment was sanctioned for supplying weapons to terrorist elements. The channel also reported that last year, Iran also transferred a similar cargo to Sudan with the same plane. Khamenei's proxy army in the Middle East, which has been weakened over the past year and a half after Israel severely damaged Hezbollah and Hamas, needs reinforcement, and it is likely that we will continue to see efforts for further connections.