A drone strike hit a social gathering in Kutum, North Darfur, on Wednesday, killing at least 12 civilians, including six children, according to the pro-democracy El-Fasher Resistance Committee. The attack targeted the Al-Salama neighborhood near Al-Um Girls' School in the town currently held by the Rapid Support Forces. Sixteen people were injured and are receiving treatment at local medical facilities.
The strike adds to a devastating pattern of drone warfare that has killed over 500 civilians across Sudan between January and mid-March 2026, according to UN Human Rights Office documentation. The deployment of unmanned aerial systems in populated areas continues to exact a severe toll on non-combatants, with markets, schools, and residential neighborhoods increasingly targeted in a conflict that has now entered its fourth year.
Attribution and accountability challenges
The El-Fasher Resistance Committee attributed Wednesday's strike to the Sudanese Armed Forces, though attribution for specific drone attacks in Sudan's civil war remains contested. Both the SAF and RSF have deployed drone systems throughout the conflict, with documented strikes killing civilians in markets and displacement routes across multiple states.
The attack occurred in territory controlled by the RSF, complicating verification efforts and humanitarian access. Kutum has witnessed particularly intense drone activity throughout early 2026, part of a broader pattern where areas under RSF control face aerial strikes that humanitarian organizations have repeatedly warned violate international humanitarian law.
Members are reading: Analysis of how systemic accountability failures enable continued drone strikes on civilians.
Sudan's displacement crisis deepens
The ongoing civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces has now displaced nearly 11 million people, according to UN estimates. Drone strikes targeting civilian areas further restrict safe zones and humanitarian access, forcing populations to navigate lethal aerial threats alongside ground combat. North Darfur has become one of the most affected regions, with civilian protection effectively collapsed in contested areas.
International humanitarian organizations have repeatedly called for adherence to international humanitarian law and protection of civilian infrastructure. Yet three years into the conflict, these appeals have not translated into operational changes on the ground. The Kutum attack underscores the urgent need for accountability mechanisms that can deter attacks on social gatherings, schools, and residential areas where civilians concentrate.
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