Tragedy In Sudan: Rebel Forces Devastate Village In Deadly Attack

In a harrowing attack by rebel forces in Sudan, at least 150 people were killed and 200 injured, according to local officials and witnesses. This latest atrocity marks a grim milestone in the year-long conflict that has displaced over 7 million people.

People from the states of Khartoum and al-Jazira, displaced by the conflict in Sudan between the army and paramilitaries, line up to receive aid from a charity organization in Gedaref on December 30, 2023.

Eyewitnesses described scenes of terror to CNN, recounting how fighters from Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) descended upon Wad al-Nour village in central Al-Jazira state on Wednesday. Over 40 armed vehicles stormed the village, unleashing heavy weaponry on its inhabitants, killing and wounding mostly civilians, including children and women.

Fighting continues just a few kilometers away, leaving villagers in constant fear of further violence. One witness detailed the grim task of counting the dead and injured, saying, “So far, we’ve buried more than 120 people in a mass grave in the middle of the village.”

CNN has not independently verified the exact number of casualties, but footage shared on social media and geolocated by CNN shows a large crowd in Wad al-Nour surrounding dozens of dead bodies, shrouded in white, preparing for burial. Another video allegedly shows the RSF militia firing heavy and medium weapons at the village.

Both the Sudanese army and the RSF have been accused of civilian massacres since the civil war broke out in April 2023. The RSF admitted to the attack in a statement on Wednesday, calling it a pre-emptive strike on Sudan’s Armed Forces (SAF) camps in Wad al-Nour in response to a planned army attack. However, they did not acknowledge the civilian deaths reported.

According to the RSF, eight of its fighters were killed, others injured, and they seized vehicles, weapons, and military equipment during the operation. Eyewitnesses, however, told CNN that there was no military presence in the village, noting that the Sudanese army operates a military base about 30 km (19 miles) southwest of Wad al-Nour, which may have been the intended target.

The leader of the SAF, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, vowed to retaliate after visiting survivors in a nearby city, according to state news agency SUNA. “The response to the militia’s crimes against the martyrs of [Wad al-Nour] will be severe and harsh,” warned al-Burhan, who is also President of the Sudanese Transitional Sovereignty Council.

Wad al-Nour, about 160 kilometers south of the Sudanese capital Khartoum, has long been a strategic target for the RSF due to its proximity to Al-Manaqil, where the Sudanese army maintains its only presence in Al-Jazira state. This attack was not the RSF’s first attempt to control Wad al-Nour; they have tried several times to seize the village.

Thousands have died since fighting erupted between forces loyal to two rival generals: army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, leader of the SAF, and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, head of the RSF. Both sides have faced accusations of civilian massacres since the conflict began.

The RSF has specifically targeted villages in Al-Jazira, Sudan’s agricultural heartland, for forced conscription and using hunger as a weapon. In March, eyewitnesses told CNN that more than 700 people, including dozens of children, were forcibly recruited by the militia after being given an ultimatum to “enlist or die.” The RSF denied these claims.

The Sudanese Transitional Sovereignty Council condemned the RSF’s actions, describing them as part of a systematic campaign of violence against civilians. “This heinous crime is added to the series of crimes committed by this rebel militia in many states of Sudan. These are criminal acts that reflect the systematic behavior of these militias in targeting civilians, plundering their property, and forcibly displacing them from their areas,” the Council stated.

A UN representative on Thursday expressed deep concern over the reported violence and called for a thorough investigation and accountability for those responsible. “Even by the tragic standards of Sudan’s conflict, the images emerging from Wad al-Nour are heart-breaking. Wars have rules that need to be respected, no matter what,” said Clementine Nkweta-Salami, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has warned that the number of people displaced by conflict inside Sudan could exceed 10 million in the coming days. “The world’s worst internal displacement crisis continues to escalate, with looming famine and disease adding to the havoc wrought by conflict,” the IOM said in a statement.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs noted that over 8.8 million people have fled their homes, and 24.8 million urgently need assistance. Last week, at the UN Security Council, Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide Alice Wairimu Nderitu warned, “The situation today bears all the marks of risk of genocide, with strong allegations that this crime has already been committed.”