27 killed in RSF attack on villages in Sudan’s North Kordofan: Medics group

The Sudan Doctors Network accused the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Friday of killing 27 people in an attack on villages in the Al-Murra area in western Bara in Sudan’s North Kordofan State.

The non-governmental network said an RSF force carried out an armed attack Thursday on villages in the area -- the second day of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.

Those killed included elderly residents, in what the group described as a new crime targeting unarmed civilians in areas with no military presence.

The network said attacks on villages and civilian areas, and the killing of residents in that manner, constitute a blatant violation of international humanitarian law and international conventions protecting civilians.

It warned that continued attacks on civilians and safe villages are worsening the humanitarian crisis and forcing more families to flee their homes.

The group urged the international community and human rights organizations to condemn the violations and take urgent action to protect civilians by pressuring RSF leaders to halt attacks against residential areas.

There was no comment from the RSF.

Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five states in the western Darfur region, except for parts of North Darfur that remain under army control. The army holds most areas of the remaining 13 states across the south, north, east and center of the country, including the capital, Khartoum.

The conflict between the army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has killed thousands of people and displaced millions.

*Writing by Tarek Chouiref