Drone Strike on Darfur Market Kills Over 100, Mostly Women and Children

More than 100 people died in drone strikes on a bustling market in Darfur, Sudan. Emergency Lawyers reports the toll stands at over 100 dead and 113 wounded. Most victims were women and children. The attack hit Nyala, the de facto capital of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). This city serves as the paramilitary group's hub in South Darfur.

Witnesses described a scene of chaos on Monday night. A cigarette vendor told the Associated Press that hundreds of RSF fighters gathered at the market. He moved his stall to avoid them, selling goods to the very troops now surrounding him. Around 8 p.m. (18:00 GMT), a drone struck. Dozens of fighters and women selling food died instantly. Another witness called the explosion massive. He estimated around 14 civilians perished, mostly women selling tea and food. Both men spoke anonymously, fearing retaliation from the warring factions.

Mubarak Bekheit, an aid worker in Darfur, said bodies were still missing. Homes in the nearby civilian neighborhood remained contaminated with debris. He expressed a grim reality: war has no morality. Civilians pay the highest price. They lose lives, loved ones, and homes. They live under constant fear of further bombardment.

Mohamed Didan, spokesperson for the army’s Special Operations Forces, claimed a different narrative. On Facebook, he stated that more than “150 militia recruits” were killed at the Dumaya camp west of Nyala. He described the air strike as “precise and targeted.” However, casualty figures remain unconfirmed. Independent verification is impossible amid limited information from the city.

Sudan Doctors Network offered a preliminary count of 21 dead and over 40 wounded. They noted that shelling caused most deaths. The group delayed their statement due to security constraints. Active military operations hindered field documentation efforts. Accessing victims and the injured in Nyala remains a significant challenge.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reported a second strike hit a civilian neighborhood after the market attack. A hospital supported by MSF in Nyala received 36 bodies in the hours following the strike. Twenty-one of those bodies were wearing civilian clothing. MSF teams treated more than 150 wounded in the emergency room. The organization called the strikes “appalling.” Markets, homes, and key civilian infrastructure are not targets. The war between the RSF and the army is now in its fourth year. It has created severe poverty, food shortages, and the world’s worst displacement crisis.

Drone strikes are killing Sudan’s civilians at a rate that has outpaced every other weapon in the conflict. The United Nations has identified these aerial attacks as the primary driver of civilian casualties in a war that has already driven parts of the nation into famine. The human cost is staggering and accelerating. In Nyala, a city under the control of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the toll on the youngest victims is particularly grim. UN estimates released earlier this month show a sharp spike in child suffering. Between January and August, the percentage of children seeking treatment for severe acute malnutrition more than doubled. It jumped from 5 percent to 11 percent. The message from the top is blunt and urgent. “All parties to the conflict must protect civilians.”