By Anietie anii-bassey
At least 28 people were killed and dozens more wounded after drone strikes hit a crowded market in Sudan’s Kordofan region, a rights organization said Monday, underscoring the mounting toll of a conflict that has devastated the country for nearly three years.
Emergency Lawyers, a group that monitors violence against civilians, said drones bombed a busy marketplace in Sudri locality in North Kordofan province on Sunday at a time when vendors and shoppers had gathered in large numbers.
The attack, the group said, intensified what it described as an already dire humanitarian catastrophe in the region. It warned that the death toll could rise as some of the injured remain in critical condition and access to medical care is severely limited.
In a statement, the organization condemned what it called the repeated use of drones against populated areas, accusing both sides in the conflict of showing blatant disregard for civilian lives. The group urged an immediate halt to aerial attacks, saying the escalation threatens to dismantle what little remains of normal daily life in North Kordofan.
The strike on the market is the latest in a string of deadly incidents in the region. Just over a week earlier, a drone attack near the city of Rahad in North Kordofan struck a vehicle carrying families who had already been displaced by fighting. At least 24 people were killed in that incident, including eight children.
The day before, a convoy operated by the World Food Program was targeted, raising fresh concerns about the safety of humanitarian operations and the growing obstacles to delivering aid.
The war between the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces erupted in April 2023 after months of tension between the rival factions. What began as a power struggle in the capital quickly spread across much of the country, transforming into a nationwide conflict that has crippled infrastructure, shattered communities and pushed millions into displacement.
According to the World Health Organization, at least 40,000 people have been killed since the fighting began, and approximately 12 million have been forced to flee their homes, making it one of the world’s largest displacement crises. Aid organizations caution that the true death toll is likely far higher.
Vast swathes of the country remain inaccessible due to active combat, damaged roads and communication blackouts, leaving casualties in remote regions largely undocumented.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights recently described Kordofan as volatile and a central battleground, with both sides vying for control of key territory. Strategic routes and supply lines in the region have made it a focal point of military operations, exposing civilians to frequent crossfire and aerial bombardment.
Both the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese military have faced allegations of serious abuses. The U.N. Human Rights Office reported last week that more than 6,000 people were killed over a span of just three days in late October when the RSF launched what it described as a wave of intense violence in Darfur. The report characterized the scale and brutality of the attacks as shocking.
In particular, the RSF’s offensive to seize the city of el-Fasher, a former military stronghold in Darfur, was marked by widespread atrocities, according to the United Nations. Investigators said the violence may amount to war crimes and potential crimes against humanity.
As the conflict approaches its third year, civilians across Sudan continue to bear the brunt of the violence. Markets, mosques, homes and even humanitarian convoys have become targets, leaving communities struggling to survive amid relentless insecurity and dwindling international attention.
Rights advocates warn that without an immediate cessation of hostilities and renewed diplomatic efforts, the humanitarian disaster will deepen further, with consequences that could reverberate across the region for years to come.
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