At least 40 people in Sudan have been killed in a drone strike that targeted a funeral taking place outside the army-held city of el-Obeid in North Kordofan state, according to officials and activists. They blamed the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) for Monday's attack on al-Luweib village as mourners gathered in a tent. Many reportedly died before reaching the hospital in el-Obeid, a strategic city linking the capital, Khartoum, to the western region of Darfur.
Fighting has intensified in this oil-rich Kordofan area, with around 20,000 people fleeing to el-Obeid last week after the RSF captured Bara town, located 30km north of the city. The town fell at the same time as el-Fasher, once the army's final stronghold in Darfur.
Reports of mass killings, sexual violence, abductions, and looting in el-Fasher by RSF fighters have been alarming. The UN has documented summary executions of civilians by RSF members in Bara. Such actions raise the specter of war crimes and crimes against humanity, as warned by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The RSF leader has promised to investigate alleged violations but denied claims that the killings are ethnically motivated. As the humanitarian crisis direly escalates—with famine conditions reported in el-Fasher and surrounding areas—UN Secretary-General António Guterres emphasized the urgent need to halt the violence. Guterres has urged both the army and RSF to engage in negotiations to end the ongoing nightmare of violence affecting millions in Sudan.
Fighting has intensified in this oil-rich Kordofan area, with around 20,000 people fleeing to el-Obeid last week after the RSF captured Bara town, located 30km north of the city. The town fell at the same time as el-Fasher, once the army's final stronghold in Darfur.
Reports of mass killings, sexual violence, abductions, and looting in el-Fasher by RSF fighters have been alarming. The UN has documented summary executions of civilians by RSF members in Bara. Such actions raise the specter of war crimes and crimes against humanity, as warned by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The RSF leader has promised to investigate alleged violations but denied claims that the killings are ethnically motivated. As the humanitarian crisis direly escalates—with famine conditions reported in el-Fasher and surrounding areas—UN Secretary-General António Guterres emphasized the urgent need to halt the violence. Guterres has urged both the army and RSF to engage in negotiations to end the ongoing nightmare of violence affecting millions in Sudan.
