Abyei drone strike: Sudan’s army accused as death toll from market attack reaches at least 153

New Delhi: A drone strike on Monday hit Amiet Market and a nearby fuel depot in the disputed Abyei region between Sudan and South Sudan, killing at least 153 people, according to local officials. The attack triggered a fire and raised fears that Sudan’s civil war is threatening communities beyond its main battlefronts.

Yohana Akol Ngor, Abyei’s caretaker information minister, blamed Sudan’s military and said about 8,000 people had been displaced. He told Radio Tamazuj on Wednesday that 153 bodies had been buried in two mass graves, but an earlier Eye Radio account quoted him giving burial figures totalling 226. The conflicting counts have not been reconciled.

A witness told Reuters he heard five explosions before a fuel depot caught fire. Flames and wreckage hampered the recovery of bodies at the market, about 10 kilometres north of Abyei town.

A senior Sudanese military officer told the Associated Press that the army had struck tankers travelling from South Sudan that he said were carrying fuel for the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Speaking anonymously, he said those killed were RSF members and smugglers, and denied that civilians were targeted. He also said the strike occurred outside the demilitarized zone along the Sudan-South Sudan border.

Ngor said the fuel depot supplied local businesses, contradicting the officer’s account that the fuel was intended for the RSF. The depot had previously been used to supply the RSF, but that does not establish who was present during Monday’s attack, Reuters quoted diplomats as saying. A witness said he had not seen uniformed fighters in the market. Sudan’s military has not issued a formal public statement.

The UN condemned drone attacks near Amiet Market and Todach, reporting civilian deaths, including women and children, and warning that the toll could rise. The UN Interim Security Force for Abyei deployed medical teams, firefighters and quick-reaction personnel for emergency treatment, evacuations and efforts to contain the blaze.

Médecins Sans Frontières said more than 20 wounded people, including patients with severe burns, were brought to Ameth Bek Hospital. Ngor separately said 30 people were receiving hospital treatment.

South Sudan’s foreign ministry condemned the attack, blamed Sudan’s military and summoned Sudan’s ambassador. It urged both countries to resolve their differences through diplomacy.
Abyei’s political status remains unresolved after Sudan’s 2005 peace agreement and South Sudan’s independence in 2011. A proposed referendum stalled over disagreements about voter eligibility, with the predominantly Ngok Dinka population favouring South Sudan while Misseriya nomads, who use the area’s pastures, favour Sudan. The region has also seen deadly communal violence over land.

Sudan’s civil war began in April 2023 after fighting erupted between the army and RSF. The recent drone strikes, including the Abyei attack, have left more than 250 people dead in several areas.