153 Killed in Drone Strike on Market in Disputed Abyei Region

A drone strike on a market in the disputed Abyei border region between Sudan and South Sudan killed at least 153 people, according to South Sudanese officials who accused the Sudanese army of carrying out the attack.

Abyei Market Strike Death Toll Rises to 153

The strike hit Amiet Market, also known as Al-Na'am Market, around 11:30 local time on Monday, about 10 km from Abyei town, igniting a fuel depot fire that spread to nearby homes and complicated body retrieval. [4] The death toll from the attack on the market in Abyei rose to 153, a South Sudanese official said. [1] On Tuesday the minister confirmed to the Associated Press and Reuters that the death toll had risen from 73 to 153 people. [4] South Sudanese officials say more than 150 people were killed in a strike on Tuesday by Khartoum’s military that hit a market in the disputed Abyei border region. [2] A local official said it hit a nearby fuel depot, igniting a fire that was still burning Tuesday, with the death toll expected to rise. [2]

Accusations Against Sudanese Army and Military Justification

Acting information minister in Abyei Special Administrative Area accuses Sudanese army of carrying out attack, with no comment from Khartoum. [1] A military source told the BBC the army targeted the market because it served as a fuel supply site for the RSF. [4] South Sudan summoned Sudan's ambassador to protest the attack. [4] The motive for the attack was not immediately clear, and journalists could not independently verify who carried it out. [2] The Sudanese armed forces spokesman did not respond to the accusations. [5]

Drone strike on Amiet Market in disputed Abyei region killed 153 people. — Source: africanews

UN Condemnation of Pattern of Drone Attacks on Civilians

The United Nations strongly condemned the Abyei market strike along with other recent drone attacks on civilians and infrastructure, including a strike in Al Dibab, West Kordofan that killed dozens, strikes in Khartoum and Nyala that killed children and other civilians, and an attack on a power station in Tendalti. [2] The United Nations has strongly condemned relentless drone attacks on civilians and critical infrastructure across Sudan. [2] "We also strongly condemn the reported killing of dozens of civilians in a drone strike on a market in the locality of Al Dibab, West Kordofan State, on Sunday," said Stephane Dujarric, the spokesperson for the UN secretary-general. [2] Dujarric said the strikes were taking a devastating toll on communities that are already struggling with the consequences of more than three years of conflict. [2] According to the spokesperson, three children aged two to six and their father were reportedly killed when a drone struck a residential area in Khartoum. [2] Another strike hit a home in Nyala, South Darfur, killing and injuring civilians, including women and children. [2] Drones have also reportedly struck the main power station in Tendalti in White Nile State. [2] “Civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected in accordance with international humanitarian law and must never be targeted,” Dujarric said. [2]

Impact on Local Population and Medical Response

Medical charity MSF received over 20 wounded patients, including critical burn cases, at Ameth Bek Hospital and is providing surgical and emergency care. [4] The market was completely destroyed. [4] The bombing spread terror and fear among the local population, market trader Fadlallah Adam Hamouda told BBC Arabic's Middle East Daily. [4] The attack caused extensive material damage after the fuel market was struck, sparking a massive fire that spread to nearby homes. [4] Earlier, Ngor told Reuters that emergency workers had struggled to retrieve the bodies because of fires caused by the strikes. [4] On Monday, medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said it had also received people wounded in the attack at Ameth Bek Hospital in Abyei town. [4] "So far we received over 20 patients, including several critical cases. Patients with burns were also admitted. We are providing surgical services and wound dressing, along with other emergency care," MSF's Christian Lindauer, the charity's manager at the hospital, said in a statement. [4]

Drone strike on Amiet Market in disputed Abyei region kills at least 153 people. — Source: cnn

Context of Sudan Civil War and Cross-Border Tensions

Sudan's civil war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces since April 2023 has increasingly involved drone strikes and spilled across borders, intensifying in oil- and gold-rich Kordofan. [4] The attack has raised tensions between South Sudan and Sudan, which jointly administer Abyei, as they both claim ownership to the oil-rich region in a dispute that has remained unresolved since South Sudan ceded in 2011. [4] South Sudan has summoned Sudan's ambassador to lodge a formal protest. [4] There are fears the conflict could spill across the border. [4] The attack in Abyei, which borders West Kordofan, took place on Monday around 11:30 local time targeting Amiet Market around 10km from Abyei town, the region's Information Minister Yohanna Akol Ngor told Radio Tamazuj. [4] Another trader told the BBC the attack had come as shock as UN peacekeepers have been in Abyei since 2011 - with more than 2,800 uniformed personnel currently deployed. [4] "Our area is a weapons-free zone under United Nations protection, yet it was targeted by drones," he said. [4] Sudan’s military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been fighting since April 2023, devastating large parts of the country and threatening stability along its borders. [2]

Broader Pattern of Recent Drone Strikes

A drone strike near the airport in Khartoum on Monday has killed four people, including three children, the AFP news agency reports, quoting a medical source. [4] The death toll from strikes in two areas of West Kordofan state on Sunday evening was 150, sources told the Sudan War Observatory. [4] It is the latest in a series of strikes as Sudan’s civil war spills across the border between the two countries. [2] The attack is part of a deeply concerning pattern. [2] We remain alarmed by the relentless drone attacks across Sudan, as well as the damage they are causing to critical infrastructure, he said. [2] Fighting in Kordofan, a strategic area rich in gold and oil, has intensified over the last year after the army regained control of Khartoum from the RSF. [4]

What to watch next: South Sudan’s formal protest to Sudan’s ambassador and continued UN calls for protection of civilians under international humanitarian law amid ongoing cross-border drone activity.