A Sudanese military drone hit a market in Nyala on October 26, killing more than 100 people, according to Emergency Lawyers, although medical and other local reports gave quite different casualty figures.
Emergency Lawyers said 113 people were wounded. It said many of the dead and injured were women and children. The rights group blamed Sudan’s armed forces and called for an independent investigation.
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said the hospital it supports in Nyala received 36 bodies, 21 of them in civilian clothing. MSF said the hospital treated more than 150 wounded people. It also reported a second strike on a civilian neighborhood.
Sudan Doctors Network gave a lower preliminary count of 21 dead and more than 40 injured. The network said shelling caused most of the deaths. Witnesses told the Associated Press that Rapid Support Forces fighters were at the market alongside civilian sellers, including women selling food.
They also described civilians among those killed. A spokesperson for forces fighting alongside the army claimed that a strike aimed at RSF recruits killed more than 150 of them. The different accounts and the full number of casualties have not been independently verified.
The RSF controls Nyala and has been at war with Sudan’s military since April 2023. The attack comes as drone warfare is increasing. It highlights the risks to civilians in markets and other public places.