Unmanned Attack on UN Base in Conflict-Ravaged Sudan Kills Six Peacekeepers

A unmanned attack targeted a United Nations compound in war-torn Sudan on Saturday, resulting in the deaths of six UN soldiers, according to a announcement.

The strike impacted a peacekeeping outpost in the city of Kadugli, located in the mid-country region of Kordofan.

8 additional soldiers were wounded in the strike. All the casualties are Bangladeshi nationals, deployed with the United Nations mission in Abyei.

“Attacks against UN personnel could amount to violations of international law under global statutes,” officials stated, urging the perpetrators for the “unjustifiable” strike to be held accountable.

Military Accuses Paramilitary Group

The national army assigned responsibility for the attack on the paramilitary RSF group, a well-known militia that has been at war with the military for dominance over the country for since April 2023.

The attack “shows the destructive nature of the paramilitary group and its supporters,” the military said in a release.

Context of the Contested Region

The resource-abundant Abyei is a contested region between Sudan and its southern neighbor, and the United Nations contingent has been operating there since 2011, when South Sudan seceded from Sudan.

Appeals for an immediate ceasefire in Sudan were also issued to allow “a wide-ranging, inclusive and locally driven dialogue” to address the fighting.

Nation Plunged into Conflict Since 2023

Sudan was plunged into widespread violence in April 2023 when a political rivalry between the military and the RSF exploded into open fighting in the capital, Khartoum and across the country.

• The conflict has taken more than 40,000 people, a figure rights groups consider a significant undercount.
• Recent combat has centred on Kordofan, particularly since the RSF captured El Fasher.
• The crisis has devastated urban areas and has been characterized by grave abuses, like mass rape and ethnically motivated killings.
• These acts have been described as international crimes by the UN and rights groups.
• The situation has also precipitated the planet's most severe humanitarian emergency and driven parts of the country into famine.