Key facts
- A Sudanese army drone strike killed at least 35 people at a customary court in North Darfur.
- The victims included tribal leaders and two RSF commanders.
- The attack occurred in al-Zawiya Ghara, a village controlled by the RSF.
- The Emergency Lawyers Group reported the incident and called for an investigation.
- The strike involved at least four missiles fired at the court building.
A drone strike, purportedly carried out by the Sudanese army, targeted Sudan's Customary Court in al-Zawiya Ghara, North Darfur, killing at least 35 people and injuring others, according to the Emergency Lawyers Group. The victims were inside the court building and its immediate surroundings when the attack occurred on Sunday. Al-Zawiya Ghara is controlled by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), and among the dead were two RSF field commanders and four tribal elders from the Mahameed branch of the Rizeigat. The drone fired at least four missiles at the court building while local leaders conducted a meeting. The attack occurs amid heightened Sudanese army drone operations across Darfur. The RSF-dominated Sudan Founding Coalition (Tasis) blamed the Sudanese army for the strike and urged an independent investigation. The Emergency Lawyers Group denounced the targeting of the court, calling it a "grave violation of international humanitarian law" and noted the increasing use of drones against civilian areas. Separately, RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo and 15 other defendants were sentenced to death in absentia in early July for their roles in the killing of West Darfur Governor Khamis Abdullah Abakar, with the court ordering the confiscation of RSF assets.