About 400 inmates escaped from Al-Jalabi Prison east of El Daein, the capital of Sudan’s East Darfur state, following drone attacks on Monday, October 19, local officials said, blaming the Sudanese army for the strikes.
Ahmed Issa Abou, a legal adviser to the RSF-aligned East Darfur state government, told Radio Tamazuj on Wednesday that the strike caused all inmates to flee the prison.
“The Sudanese army targeted Al-Jalabi Prison, a civilian facility holding more than 400 inmates,” Abou said. He added that some prisoners had been sentenced to life imprisonment, while others were serving sentences for various criminal offences.
He said some inmates had been convicted and were serving prison terms, while others were awaiting trial. The alleged offences included murder, theft, looting and financial disputes.
Abou denied that the prison was holding prisoners of war or political detainees, saying those inside at the time of the attack had been accused or convicted of ordinary criminal offences.
He accused the army of deliberately targeting the prison to allow inmates to escape punishment, describing the attack as a criminal act and calling for an investigation by international organisations.
“This is a serious violation that should be investigated by international organisations,” he said.
Casualties reported
Al-Azraq Hassan Himida, director general of the East Darfur state health ministry, said 34 people were killed or injured in Monday’s drone attacks on El Daein. He said the prison was hit by four drones.
Himida said the state had experienced 17 air strikes between August 2024 and October 19, 2026, resulting in 383 people being killed or wounded. He did not provide a breakdown of the casualties.
He described the prison as a civilian facility with no military role and accused the army of violating inmates’ rights.
“The prison is a civilian facility, and the prisoners had been through the legal process,” Himida said, holding the army responsible for the attack.
He called on the United Nations and human rights organisations to investigate attacks on civilian infrastructure, including prisons and hospitals.
Civilian sites
Journalist Ali Al-Rafiq, who witnessed the incident, also condemned the strike on the prison, telling Radio Tamazuj that it followed an attack on a popular restaurant.
He described the attack as a grave crime and expressed concern over strikes on civilian infrastructure.
The Sudanese army’s response to the allegations was not immediately available.
Sudan has been at war since April 2023, when fighting erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces following a power struggle between their leaders. The army controls much of northern, eastern and central Sudan, while the RSF holds most of Darfur, with front lines contested in parts of Kordofan and Blue Nile. The conflict has displaced millions of people and devastated civilian infrastructure.
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