Sudan's Burhan survives drone strike on military base, which killed five: army

Sudan's military said its top commander, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, survived a drone attack on a military graduation ceremony that killed five people in the country’s east.

The strike targeted the eastern Sudanese army base during a visit by General al-Burhan on Tuesday, eyewitnesses told Reuters on Wednesday, casting doubt over recent efforts to bring an end to a 15-month civil war.

A statement by the army said the attack took place at a graduation ceremony at the Gibet army base, about 100 km (62 miles) from the army's de facto capital Port Sudan in Sudan's Red Sea state, and where the five people were killed.

The strike occurred after the ceremony was concluded.  Burhan was not hurt, according to Lt. Col. Hassan Ibrahim, from the military spokesman's office.

The drone attack is the latest in a string of such attacks on army locations in recent months, and the closest to Port Sudan.

The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, the army's rival in the war, has not claimed responsibility for any of them, and did not comment on Tuesday's incident.

The strike comes a day after the army-aligned foreign ministry conditionally accepted a U.S. invitation to talks in Switzerland in August. The RSF responded to the ministry's statement saying it would only negotiate with the army and not the Islamists who make up a large part of the civil service.