An attack on a funeral gathering in El-Obeid, the capital of Sudan’s central Kordofan region, has left at least 40 people dead, according to the United Nations. The assault comes amid signs that paramilitary forces are preparing a new offensive in the war-torn country.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) did not specify when the incident occurred or identify the perpetrators, but warned that the situation in Kordofan continues to deteriorate.
Sudan’s war which erupted in 2023 between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has already killed tens of thousands and displaced millions. Fighting has recently spread to new areas, fueling fears of a worsening humanitarian crisis.
Following the RSF’s capture of El-Fasher, the last major army stronghold in western Darfur, the group is now reportedly preparing to launch a new assault in Kordofan.
“Local sources report that at least 40 civilians were killed and dozens injured in an attack on a funeral gathering in El-Obeid,” OCHA said in a statement.
“Once again, OCHA calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities and for all parties to protect civilians and respect international humanitarian law.”
Civilians fleeing El-Fasher have shared accounts of horrific violence, including mass rape by RSF fighters.
“The rapes were gang rapes in public, in front of everyone. No one could stop it,” said Amira (a pseudonym), a mother of four now sheltering in Tawila, 70 kilometres west of El-Fasher.
According to Doctors Without Borders (MSF), more than 300 survivors of sexual violence have sought medical care in Tawila following an earlier RSF assault on Zamzam Camp, which displaced over 380,000 people last spring.
“You’d be asleep and they’d come and rape you,” Amira said during a webinar hosted by the campaign group Avaaz.
“If you couldn’t pay, they’d take your daughters instead.”
Both the RSF and the Sudanese army have been accused of committing atrocities throughout the two-year war.
The fall of El-Fasher means the RSF now controls all five state capitals in Darfur, deepening fears that Sudan could split along east-west lines.
The RSF dominates Darfur and much of the south, while the army retains control of the north, east, and central regions along the Nile and the Red Sea.
The United Nations has accused the United Arab Emirates of supplying weapons to the RSF — an allegation the UAE denies. Meanwhile, observers say the Sudanese army has received backing from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Iran.
Sudan’s Defence Minister Hassan Kabroun said on Tuesday that the military would continue its campaign against the RSF while reviewing a US-proposed ceasefire plan.
“We thank the Trump administration for its efforts to achieve peace,” Kabroun said on state television. “But our preparations for the Sudanese people’s battle are ongoing. Our right to defend the nation is legitimate.”
The White House confirmed that the United States, along with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, remains “actively engaged” in pursuing peace talks.
“We want to see this conflict end peacefully,” said Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, “but the reality is that it’s a very complex situation on the ground.”
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has expressed “profound alarm and deepest concern” over reports of mass killings and sexual violence in El-Fasher, warning that such acts could amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Speaking in Qatar on Tuesday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres appealed directly to both sides:
“Come to the negotiating table. Bring an end to this nightmare of violence now.”
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