RSF Attacks on Civilians Extend to Kordofan
Sudan Events – Agencies
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) launched an attack on a Sudanese Red Crescent team in the Al-Andaraba area of North Kordofan, injuring ten volunteers and destroying two of the team’s vehicles.
Mohamed Ismail, the state’s Humanitarian Aid Commissioner, told Al Jazeera that the RSF used a drone strike against the Red Crescent team in Kordofan, about 70 kilometers west of Khartoum state. He said the attack took place at the home of a local executive official in Jabra Al-Sheikh locality.
According to Ismail, the targeted team had been tasked with collecting and burying bodies left behind after clashes in the area.
The Sudanese Red Crescent earlier confirmed that its “remains management” team (responsible for the safe and proper burial of bodies) had been struck by a projectile at its residence in Al-Andaraba last Saturday, injuring team members and damaging two vehicles clearly marked with the Red Crescent emblem. The organization did not initially identify the attackers.
In recent weeks, fierce battles between the Sudanese army and the RSF have escalated across the three states of Kordofan—North, West, and South—as both sides vie for control, worsening civilian suffering and plunging the humanitarian and medical situation into further crisis.
The cities of Kadugli and Dilling in South Kordofan entered a new phase of humanitarian deterioration in August 2025, after the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–North (SPLM-N) seized the town of Um Adara, cutting off one of the main trade routes from Al-Na’am market near the South Sudan border.
Meanwhile, the RSF tightened its grip on the flow of goods and aid from El-Obeid, the main transport and supply hub, effectively paralyzing relief corridors to Kadugli and Dilling, leaving thousands of civilians facing hunger and disease.
UN Condemnation of Civilian Killings
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk on Thursday condemned the killing of dozens of civilians by both warring parties in Sudan, amid escalating hostilities in Kordofan last week.
The UN Human Rights Office verified that at least 60 civilians were killed by the RSF in Bara locality, North Kordofan, since July 10. Civil society organizations warned the toll could be as high as 300.
Reports also confirmed that Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) airstrikes killed at least 23 civilians and injured more than 30 others in two villages in West Kordofan between July 10 and 14. On Thursday, July 17, another airstrike by SAF reportedly killed at least 11 civilians from a single family in Bara locality.
“It is painful that, more than two years after the conflict erupted, the militia continues to inflame the fighting in Sudan, showing a blatant disregard for civilian lives and safety,” Türk said.
The latest killings come amid mounting reports of RSF troop build-ups for a possible assault on El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan.
Türk also expressed deep concern for the safety of civilians in El-Fasher, North Darfur, following a series of RSF attacks on the besieged city in recent days, including a ground assault on July 11–12 that caused civilian casualties.
He warned that “the escalation of hostilities in North Darfur and Kordofan will only compound the grave risks faced by civilians and worsen the catastrophic humanitarian situation in a conflict that has already inflicted unspeakable suffering on the Sudanese people.”
The High Commissioner urged influential actors to step in and prevent further escalation, ensuring both parties uphold their obligations under international law, including the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Türk reiterated his call on the warring parties to guarantee safe, sustained, and unhindered humanitarian access, including through temporary humanitarian pauses, and to prevent and deter violations of international law. He further stressed the need for full, independent investigations into all alleged violations and for those responsible to be held to account.
Source: Al Jazeera
