The United Nations on Monday expressed concern over reports that dozens of civilians were killed during the Eid al-Adha holiday as fighting intensified across Sudan’s Kordofan and Darfur regions.
UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told reporters that the organisation condemned the killings and warned that escalating insecurity was worsening humanitarian conditions and disrupting aid operations.
According to UN humanitarian agencies, clashes in the town of Bara in North Kordofan state killed at least a dozen civilians, displaced families and increased humanitarian needs.
In South Kordofan, the International Organization for Migration reported that more than 2,200 people had been displaced in recent days.
Local sources cited by the United Nations said a drone strike in the Kadam area of West Kordofan killed at least eight civilians and wounded several others. In Central Darfur state, at least 10 people, including three children, were reportedly killed in a drone strike on the town of Um Dukhun on Saturday.
The United Nations said intercommunal violence in Central and South Darfur states had caused further casualties and displacement, forcing some families to flee across the border into Chad.
The deteriorating security situation has also hindered humanitarian operations. In Central Darfur, aid activities serving about 21,000 people were suspended following clashes, Dujarric said.
Meanwhile, a suspected cholera outbreak in West Kordofan continues to spread. More than 300 suspected cases and 77 deaths had been recorded as of Sunday, according to the United Nations.
Aid agencies responding to the outbreak face shortages of critical supplies and resources, the UN said.
Sudanese authorities declared an end to a nationwide cholera outbreak in March after more than 124,000 cases and over 3,500 deaths were recorded.
The United Nations warned that the risk of cholera and other water-borne diseases could rise during the rainy season, which begins this month, particularly as attacks on infrastructure continue to limit access to clean water.
The organisation renewed its call for all parties to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure and to allow unhindered humanitarian access.
Dujarric also appealed for increased donor support, saying that only 22% of the $2.9 billion required for the UN’s 2026 humanitarian response plan for Sudan had been funded so far.
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