EL‑OBEID, Sudan — At least 13 people, including eight children, were killed when a drone hit a house in the city of El‑Obeid, according to the Sudan Doctors’ Network. Most of the victims belonged to the same family.
Although no group has claimed responsibility, medics allege the strike was carried out by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), targeting an area under army control. The RSF has not responded to the claims.
Escalation of Violence
Witnesses said the drone struck a residential neighbourhood on Monday, shaking homes and leaving families devastated. The Sudan Doctors’ Network described the incident as “a dangerous escalation of indiscriminate killing and systematic bombing of safe residential areas.”
El‑Obeid, in North Kordofan state, remains under army control despite RSF advances elsewhere. Analysts say the city is strategically important, lying between Khartoum and Darfur, where the RSF has established a parallel administration and faces accusations of genocide.
Wider Conflict
Sudan’s civil war between the army and RSF rebels is approaching its third year. The UN and aid agencies describe it as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, with:
- 11 million people displaced from their homes.
- Hundreds of thousands killed in fighting.
- Widespread sexual violence used as a weapon of war.
Both the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces have been accused of atrocities.
Recent Attacks
The El‑Obeid strike follows an RSF attack on a power plant in the city days earlier, and what the army claims was an attempted RSF drone strike on Sudan’s largest hydro‑electric dam near Merowe in the north.
Outlook
As the war drags on, civilians remain trapped between two warring factions. The latest attack underscores the growing use of drones in Sudan’s conflict, raising fears of further civilian casualties and deepening instability in a country already on the brink.