Drone strikes on the strategic Sudanese city of El-Obeid resulted in the deaths of 23 individuals, as reported by a rights group and local witnesses on Thursday. This attack marks one of the deadliest aerial assaults the city has faced since the beginning of the ongoing war.
The hostilities in Sudan escalated in April 2023, pitting the army against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Drone warfare has become a prominent aspect of the conflict, causing increasing casualties among civilians.
A resident from the Al-Matar neighborhood described a scene of devastation, noting that “the roofs of houses collapsed on their occupants.” He expressed disbelief at the destruction he witnessed, stating, “When you look at some houses, you feel no one could have survived.”
Another local, from the Al-Qubba neighborhood, confirmed the death of his cousin and reported seeing over seven bodies transported to a nearby hospital. According to a medical source, among the deceased were two children and a woman believed to be their mother.
The Emergency Lawyers group, which documents human rights violations throughout the conflict, stated that the attacks began on Wednesday evening and persisted into Thursday. Strikes targeted residential areas, a funeral gathering, and a truck laden with food supplies.
In addition to the fatalities, at least 19 others were reported wounded. The group attributed the airstrikes to the RSF, although these claims remain unverified, and there has been no immediate response from the paramilitary force.
El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, has faced months of partial encirclement by RSF forces and is situated on a crucial route linking RSF-held territories in Darfur with army-controlled areas in the east.
The Emergency Lawyers indicated that the first wave of strikes killed five civilians and injured 12. A subsequent attack on mourners at a cemetery resulted in four additional deaths and seven injuries. Further aerial assaults struck homes in the Al-Muwazafin and Al-Matar neighborhoods, as well as areas near the headquarters of the Fifth Infantry Division, leading to the deaths of 13 more civilians.
In a separate incident early Thursday, a drone attack targeted a food supply truck at the southern entrance to El-Obeid, killing the driver and destroying the vehicle’s cargo.
The United Nations has reported that at least 880 civilians lost their lives in drone strikes across Sudan between January and April this year. Fighting has intensified in recent months, particularly in Kordofan and Blue Nile state, exacerbated by the RSF’s capture of El-Fasher, the army’s final major stronghold in western Darfur last October.
Kordofan, rich in oil deposits and arable land, remains a crucial battleground, with fierce competition for control persisting. The broader conflict has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and displaced more than 11 million people, leading the UN to characterize the situation as the world’s largest displacement and hunger crises.
