An attack by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on a village in central Sudan has resulted in the deaths of up to 100 people, according to local pro-democracy activists. The Wad Madani Resistance Committees reported on social media late Wednesday that the RSF attacked the village of Wad al-Noura in Gezira state in two waves, using heavy artillery.
Photos shared by the committees depict dozens of bodies wrapped for burial in what they described as a “mass grave” in the village’s public square. The activists claim the Sudanese army did not respond to villagers’ calls for help and are awaiting a confirmed toll of the dead and injured. Independent verification of the report was not immediately possible.
The RSF has a history of besieging and attacking villages across Sudan, especially in the agricultural state of Gezira, where it took control of the capital Wad Madani in December. In a statement on Wednesday, the RSF said it had attacked army and allied militia bases around Wad al-Noura but did not acknowledge any civilian casualties.
The Wad Madani Resistance Committees accused the RSF of deadly attacks on civilians, looting, and forcing women and children to seek refuge in the nearby town of Managil. The army-aligned Transitional Sovereign Council condemned the reported attack, calling it a “criminal act” and reflecting the systematic behavior of the RSF militias in targeting civilians.
Sudan’s civil war, which erupted in April 2023, stems from a rivalry between Sudan’s army chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and his deputy and RSF commander, Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo. The conflict has spread beyond the capital, Khartoum, to other parts of Sudan, including the southwestern state of Darfur. The RSF, which evolved from the Janjaweed militia known for its role in the Darfur conflict, has taken over much of western Sudan and is now advancing into the center of the country.
The 14-month-long war has claimed tens of thousands of lives, destroyed infrastructure, and devastated Sudan’s economy. Around 8.3 million people have been displaced, with many seeking refuge in neighboring Chad and South Sudan. Hunger and starvation are widespread.
“Time is running out for millions of people in Sudan who are at imminent risk of famine, displaced from their lands, living under bombardments, and cut off from humanitarian assistance,” United Nations agencies warned in a joint statement last week.
In addition to the attack in Wad al-Noura, there has been renewed fighting between the army and RSF in the western city of El-Fasher, with both sides using heavy weapons and artillery. Claire Nicolet, head of emergency response in Sudan for Doctors Without Borders, emphasized the severe impact of the conflict on the population, warning of a high mortality rate if the situation continues.
“If the situation continues like this, there will be really a very high mortality – that is for sure,” Nicolet told journalists.
