The Sudanese Alliance for Rights strongly condemns the drone strike carried out earlier today by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) on the central market area of Ghabish City, West Kordofan State.
According to preliminary reports, the morning attack targeted a restaurant located within the city’s central market, which was full of civilians at the time. It resulted in the deaths of more than 20 people and left many others injured, including women and children. The strike caused widespread devastation in a densely populated civilian area and has further deepened fears over the escalating toll of the conflict on Sudanese civilians.
We extend our deepest condolences to the families of those killed and stand in solidarity with the injured and all those affected by this tragic attack.
The targeting of a location within a civilian-populated market raises serious concerns regarding violations of international humanitarian law, particularly the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution as enshrined under the Geneva Conventions and customary international law. This attack also constitutes violations of the right to life and human dignity as protected under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Where civilians are intentionally or indiscriminately targeted, such acts amount to war crimes under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
The Sudanese Alliance for Rights calls upon the SAF to immediately cease attacks on civilian-populated areas and to fully comply with their obligations under international humanitarian law. We further urge the African Union, Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the United Nations, and all relevant international partners to press for an immediate, independent, and transparent investigation into this attack and to take concrete steps to ensure accountability for those responsible. We also call on the United Nations Human Rights Council, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and relevant special procedures of both the United Nations and African human rights systems to intensify monitoring and reporting efforts, strengthen measures for civilian protection, and press for urgent intervention to prevent further attacks against civilian communities across Sudan.
The killing of civilians, including women and children, is a painful reminder of the devastating human cost of Sudan’s ongoing conflict. Civilians must never bear the burden of hostilities, and all parties must be held accountable for actions that place innocent lives at risk.
Sudanese Alliance for Rights
19 May 2026
