Al-Rahad, July 20 (Darfur24)
At least six civilians were killed and 27 others injured on Sunday after a drone strike targeted the main market and a nearby residential neighborhood in Al-Rahad, about 40 kilometers from El Obeid in North Kordofan State, according to local and medical sources.
A medical source at Al-Rahad Rural Hospital told Darfur24 that the hospital received the bodies of six victims and treated 27 wounded people, most of whom suffered serious injuries requiring referral to hospitals in El Obeid and Kosti, White Nile State.
The dead were identified as Muhammad Zakaria, Munir Siddiq Issa, Suleiman Ishaq, Abdullah Fadlallah Muhammad, Julie Hussein Dabib, and Bahr al-Din Madawi. The source said two women were among those critically injured.
Mohammed Abdel Ghani Al-Shafi, a community leader in Al-Rahad, told Darfur24 that a drone, believed to belong to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), fired three missiles at the main market before striking a nearby residential neighborhood, causing civilian casualties.
He added that the drone also hit a commercial truck parked in a neighborhood after it had unloaded its cargo and was returning to White Nile State. The strike sent thick smoke rising over the town.
Eyewitnesses said the attack triggered panic among residents, while traders immediately closed the main market following the bombardment.
The Sudanese Armed Forces had not commented on the incident at the time of publication, and the RSF had not claimed responsibility for the attack.
Since the war erupted in April 2023, both the Sudanese army and the RSF have increasingly used drones in military operations, with strikes frequently affecting civilian areas and infrastructure.