Catastrophe in Darfur: Hundreds Feared Dead in Alleged Sudanese Airstrike

Human rights monitors accuse Sudan's military of conducting a catastrophic airstrike on Tur'rah market, resulting in hundreds of fatalities and injuries, amid escalating violence in the ongoing civil conflict.

In a harrowing development from the war-torn region of Sudan, a recent airstrike targeting the bustling Tur'rah market has reportedly resulted in the deaths of hundreds of civilians. The Emergency Lawyers group, a key war monitor tracking violations amid the ongoing civil conflict erupting since April 2023, has labeled the strike a "horrific massacre." Eyewitness accounts and troubling images circulating on social media, some courtesy of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF)—the army's rival paramilitary group—depict the aftermath: smoking debris, shattered market stalls, and bodies disfigured beyond recognition.

While a military representative refutes allegations of civilian targeting, asserting that strikes were aimed at legitimate military threats, the RSF has consistently accused the armed forces of inducing terror through indiscriminate shelling of civilian neighborhoods. The RSF has been utilizing drones, yet it is the Sudanese army that enjoys control of air power, frequently launching assaults against RSF installations across the conflict-ridden region.

The precise number of casualties and the date of the strike remain unconfirmed by independent sources, though local activist organization, the Darfur Initiative for Justice and Peace, claims that the event occurred on Monday, terming it the "deadliest single bombing since the onset of the war." The frequency of civilian fatalities from airstrikes and shelling has escalated dramatically, coinciding with a renewed intensity in battles between rival factions.

As of now, approximately 12 million people in Sudan have been forced to flee their homes—a displacement figure comparable to the total population of Belgium—while famine grips the nation. The UN has reported that over 50% of the population suffers from severe food insecurity, marking Sudan as the worst humanitarian crisis worldwide. Estimates regarding the conflict's death toll range widely, but reports suggest at least 150,000 lives lost since the start of hostilities.

The RSF has rejected claims of committing genocide in Darfur, which include allegations of mass killings of civilians and sexual violence targeted at non-Arab women purportedly intended for ethnic cleansing. International observers and humanitarian organizations are urging immediate action to address the spiraling humanitarian disaster.