Armed group profile · SD Strength Index
Rapid Support Forces: military strength 2026
How strong are the Rapid Support Forces in 2026?
Three and a half years into its war with the Sudanese army, the RSF holds almost all of Darfur and much of West Kordofan. Nyala is the seat of its parallel Tasis government. Silent Dossier estimates about 100,000 fighters, inside a wide range of 60,000 to 150,000, and no independent count exists for 2026. In May 2026 its leader, Hemedti, claimed the force had grown to 450,000. Nothing supports that number.
Combat experience is the RSF's main asset. Its weak points are cohesion and discipline, and both got worse this year as losses mounted in Kordofan.
How much of the RSF is professional and how much is militia?
The trained core is small. Silent Dossier puts the salaried regulars at 20,000 to 40,000. The upper figure dates from before the war, and three years of attrition have almost certainly eroded it. This cadre answers to the Dagalo family and is the only part of the force with real central command.
Around it sit an estimated 40,000 to 110,000 irregulars: levies from Arab tribes in Darfur and Kordofan, recruits from across the Sahel and allied militias. They are highly mobile and poorly disciplined. The capture of El Fasher in October 2025, after a siege of 18 months, came with mass killings of civilians. Strain is showing too: about 200 fighters were reported to have defected to the army in September 2026.
Foreign contractors fill some skill gaps. Colombian fighters have been reported operating drones and artillery, and Washington sanctioned people and firms recruiting them in December 2025 and again in April 2026.
What weapons does the RSF have?
The RSF is built around armed pickups carrying heavy machine guns and recoilless guns. It adds tanks and howitzers captured from the army, notably after the 22nd Division base at Babanusa fell in December 2025, but nobody has counted them. It has no aircraft and no ballistic or cruise missiles.
It does have some modern air defence. At least one Chinese FK-2000 system for close air defence has been identified; a Sudanese army Akinci drone destroyed one in South Kordofan in February 2026. The army also claims to have wrecked dozens of RSF vehicles in single battles, including 36 near El Obeid in April. They are an enemy's battlefield claims and say little about what the RSF actually holds.
How big is the RSF drone fleet?
It is the part of the arsenal that keeps growing. Satellite imagery in September 2025 showed at least 43 drones at Nyala airport, more than 23 of them with the delta wing shape of Shahed type attack drones. Six larger CH-95 or FH-95 class aircraft had been seen there that April. Silent Dossier estimates 43 to 150 drones, not counting small quadcopters.
The CH-95 class has a radius of roughly 250 km, yet Port Sudan, more than 1,000 km from Darfur, was hit by drones in May 2025, and which type struck it is still disputed. In 2026 the RSF turned to drone raids on El Obeid, Khartoum, Atbara and the Merowe Dam after the army pushed it back on the ground. More than 1,100 civilians were killed by drones in Sudan in the first half of 2026, by both sides. In October a strike on a shelter for displaced people in El Obeid reportedly killed at least 13 children.
Who backs the RSF?
The United Arab Emirates is accused of supplying the RSF and of helping deploy Colombian fighters to it. The UAE denies both. Haftar's network in eastern Libya is alleged to provide a transit route, and Russia's Wagner group was involved earlier in the war, in 2023. The CH-95 class drones reportedly came from China via the UAE; how the FK-2000 arrived is unconfirmed.
Money comes from gold mining and trading in Darfur and Kordofan, trade across Sudan's borders and taxes on the territory it holds. That economy lets the RSF keep fighting even as sanctions pressure rises. It cannot retake central Sudan with pickups and drones, and the army's July and August offensive in North Kordofan proved how exposed its ground forces are. In October 2026 the army chief rejected talks, and talks in Geneva on a US proposal for a 90 day humanitarian truce ended without a deal.
Key figures
| Fighters | 60k–150k | C |
| Full-time trained core | 20k–40k | C |
| Reservists and irregulars | 40k–110k | C |
| Ballistic missiles | 0 | B |
| Cruise and anti-ship missiles | 0 | B |
| Longest strike range (km) | 250–1,500 | C |
| Drones | 43–150 | C |
| Air-defence systems | 1–5 | C |
| Aircraft | 0 | B |
A confirmed B strong estimate C estimated range
Main weapons
| CH-95 / FH-95 class (Chinese, attribution contested) | ~6 | B |
| Shahed-style delta-wing one-way attack UAV | ~23 | B |
| Loitering munitions, quadcopters and modified commercial drones | — | C |
| FK-2000 (Chinese SHORAD) | ~1 | B |
| Armed pickups (technicals) with HMG / recoilless guns | — | B |
| Captured SAF armour and artillery | — | C |
Assessment
| Firepower | 3/5 | |
| Cohesion and command | 2/5 | |
| Outside support | 4/5 | |
| Combat experience | 5/5 | |
| Professionalism | 2/5 |
Ground. It holds almost all of Darfur, including El Fasher and Nyala, seat of its parallel Tasis government, and much of West Kordofan around Babanusa and Heglig. Fronts in North and South Kordofan and Blue Nile are contested.
Professional or irregular. A salaried, centrally commanded core of an estimated 20,000 to 40,000 under the Dagalo family sits inside a larger, loosely disciplined mass of tribal levies and allied militias. It is highly mobile but carried out mass killings at El Fasher. Foreign contractors have added drone and artillery skills, and some fighters defected in 2026.
What changed in 2026
Questions readers ask
How many fighters does the RSF have?
Silent Dossier estimates about 100,000, within a range of 60,000 to 150,000. Only 20,000 to 40,000 are trained regulars; the rest are tribal levies and allied militias. Hemedti's claim of 450,000 is unverified.
Does the RSF have drones?
Yes. At least 43 were seen at Nyala airport in September 2025, many of them Shahed type attack drones, and Silent Dossier estimates up to 150. The RSF uses them to strike cities and infrastructure hundreds of kilometres from the front.
Does the RSF have an air force?
No. It has no aircraft. It relies on drones for strike and on a small number of Chinese FK-2000 systems, plus anti aircraft guns and portable missiles, for air defence.
Who supports the Rapid Support Forces?
The United Arab Emirates is accused of supplying the RSF, which it denies. Haftar's network in Libya is alleged to offer a transit route, and Russia's Wagner group was involved in 2023.
What territory does the RSF control?
Almost all of Darfur, including El Fasher since October 2025, and much of West Kordofan. Fronts in North and South Kordofan and Blue Nile remain contested.