At least 40 people in Sudan have been killed in a drone strike that targeted a funeral that was taking place outside the army-held city of el-Obeid in North Kordofan state, officials and activists say.
They blamed the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) for Monday’s attack on al-Luweib village as mourners had gathered in a tent. The RSF has not yet commented.
Many reportedly died before getting to hospital in el-Obeid, a strategic city that connects the capital, Khartoum, to the western region of Darfur.
Fighting has intensified in this oil-rich Kordofan area and around 20,000 people fled to el-Obeid last week after the RSF captured Bara town, 30km (18 miles) north of the city.
The town fell at the same time as the city of el-Fasher, which had been the army’s last stronghold in Darfur.
There have since been reports of mass killings, sexual violence, abductions and widespread looting in el-Fasher by RSF fighters.
The UN said summary executions of civilians by RSF fighters had also also been reported in Bara.
Such atrocities could amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has warned.
The RSF leader has promised to investigate “violations” but his paramilitary group has denied widespread allegations that the killings in el-Fasher are ethnically motivated and follow a pattern of the Arab paramilitaries targeting non-Arab populations.
The ICC’s statement came as a global group of food security experts confirmed on Monday that el-Fasher residents were suffering from famine following the RSF’s 18-month siege of the city.
Credit: bbc.com
