At Least 28 Killed in Drone Strike on Sudan Market in Kordofan, Rights Group Says

At least 28 people were killed and dozens injured after drone strikes hit a crowded market in Sudan’s Kordofan region, a rights group said on Monday, underscoring what it described as a crime against humanity as the country’s war approaches its third year.

Emergency Lawyers, which monitors violence against civilians, said drones bombed a market in Sudri locality in North Kordofan on Sunday at a time when it was bustling with shoppers. The group warned that the toll could rise and accused the warring sides of showing grave disregard for civilian lives .

The conflict in Sudan erupted into a full-scale war on April 15, 2023 , after months of tension between the national army and a powerful paramilitary force spiralled into open fighting in the capital, Khartoum . The war pits the Sudanese Armed Forces against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) , former allies who fell out over plans to integrate the RSF into the regular military following a 2021 coup.

Since then, the fighting has spread across the country, including the western region of Darfur and parts of Kordofan. According to the World Health Organization, at least 40,000 people have been killed and around 12 million displaced , though aid agencies say the real toll could be far higher due to limited access to remote areas.

Rights groups say drones have become an increasingly common weapon in the conflict. Unlike conventional airstrikes, drones can be deployed remotely and with relative precision, but they have repeatedly struck markets, aid convoys and vehicles carrying displaced families . Earlier this month, a drone strike near Rahad in North Kordofan killed at least 24 people, including children, while a World Food Programme convoy was also targeted.

The United Nations has warned that Kordofan remains volatile, with both sides accused of atrocities. The U.N. The Human Rights Office said in a report on Friday that more than 6,000 people were killed over three days in late October when the RSF unleashed “a wave of intense violence shocking in its scale and brutality” in Darfur. Observers say the continued use of drones in populated areas risks further civilian casualties and may amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity under international law.