# UAE re-routes its weapons airbridge to Sudan's RSF through Ethiopia
> Le Monde and US lawmakers say Abu Dhabi opened covert cargo routes via Ethiopia and CAR to keep arming the RSF, contradicting assurances given to Washington

**Meta:** type: story · date: 2026-06-24 · heads: किसका पैसा, जो वे नहीं कह रहे · 8 takes · 3 lenses · 5 regions

## Summary

[United Arab Emirates](/hi/entity/united-arab-emirates)-linked cargo flights have re-routed weapons to [Sudan](/hi/entity/sudan)'s Rapid Support Forces via [Ethiopia](/hi/entity/ethiopia) and the Central African Republic, according to a March 2026 Le Monde investigation and US lawmakers. Senator Chris Van Hollen and Rep. Sara Jacobs, citing a US administration briefing, confirmed Abu Dhabi is still arming the [RSF](/hi/entity/sudan-war) — contradicting assurances it gave [United States](/hi/entity/united-states). Investigators name specific aircraft, including a heavy An-124 transport, and UAE-linked operators (Maximus Air Cargo, International Golden Group, Abu Dhabi Aviation) as a covert "airbridge" replacing exposed earlier routes. The UAE denies backing the RSF. A UN panel is probing the transfers. This is the supply line sustaining a war widely described as genocidal in Darfur. See [US senators move to block UAE arms over Sudan's RSF](/hi/n/uae-rsf-sudan-arms-senate).

## By the numbers

- 2 — main re-routing hubs: Ethiopia and CAR.
- An-124 — heavy transport flagged in the flight data.
- 3 — UAE-linked firms named (Maximus, IGG, Abu Dhabi Aviation).
- 2023 — start of the RSF war the airbridge sustains.
- 0 — Emirati admissions of arming the RSF (formal denial stands).

## Why it matters

External arming is the variable keeping Sudan's war going. If the documented airbridge forces real US or UN consequences for the [United Arab Emirates](/hi/entity/united-arab-emirates) — a close US partner — it tests whether assurances to Washington carry any cost when broken; if not, the proxy supply continues unimpeded.

## What to watch

- Whether Congress conditions arms sales or aid to the UAE on the RSF flows.
- The UN panel's findings on the transfer network.
- Fresh flight-tracking exposing new routes or operators.

## Regional takes (batched by bias / lens)

### unlabelled
- **Van Hollen / Jacobs joint statement (US Congress)** (United States, en) — Joint statement by Senator Van Hollen and Rep. Jacobs — the on-the-record congressional confirmation, citing a US administration briefing, that the UAE continues to provide weapons to the RSF in contradiction of its assurances to Washington.
  Source: https://www.vanhollen.senate.gov/news/press-releases/van-hollen-jacobs-confirm-uae-providing-weapons-to-rsf-in-sudan-in-contradiction-to-its-assurances-to-us
- **Sara Jacobs (US House)** (United States, en) — 
  Source: https://sarajacobs.house.gov/news/press-releases/jacobs-van-hollen-confirm-uae-providing-weapons-to-rsf-in-sudan-in-contradiction-to-its-assurances-to-us
- **The Canary** (United Kingdom, en) — 
  Source: https://www.thecanary.co/global/2026/03/24/uae-funnels-weapons-to-sudan-militia/
- **Martin Plaut** (United Kingdom, en) — 
  Source: https://martinplaut.com/2026/01/21/weapons-tracked-from-the-uae-to-sudans-rsf-via-ethiopia/
- **Atlantic Council** (United States, en) — 
  Source: https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/sudan-rsf-saf-uae-intervention/
- **Global Initiative** (Switzerland, en) — 
  Source: https://globalinitiative.net/analysis/the-illicit-transnational-supply-chains-sustaining-sudans-conflict/

### investigative, flight-tracking
- **Le Monde** (France, fr) — Le Monde's investigation (relayed here) traces a network of UAE-departing cargo flights to East and Central Africa — Ethiopia and CAR — identifying specific aircraft and UAE-linked operators as a covert airbridge replacing routes exposed earlier.
  > "UAE-linked cargo flights identified supplying weapons to the RSF through Ethiopia."
  Source: https://www.business-humanrights.org/en/latest-news/sudan-a-report-revealed-uae-linked-cargo-flights-supplying-weapons-to-rsf-through-ethiopia/

### anti-Gulf-intervention framing
- **The Cradle** (Lebanon, en) — Frames the supply chain through the lens of UN scrutiny and Gulf impunity, foregrounding the probe into Emirati transfers and the gap between Abu Dhabi's denials and the documented flight data — a sharper anti-UAE reading than Western coverage.
  > "UN probes UAE arms transfers to the RSF militia in Sudan."
  Source: https://thecradle.co/articles-id/30410

## Across the graph
- Related: [[uae-rsf-sudan-arms-senate]]
- Entities: Sudan War, United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Ethiopia, United States

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Canonical: https://rbtfl.xyz/hi/n/uae-rsf-arms-airbridge-ethiopia