Sudan drone strike on Darfur funeral procession kills 28 civilians

BBC reporter Catherine Byaruhanga, broadcasting from El Fasher, said the strike hit an open area near Abu Shouk displacement camp at 14:30 local time. The funeral was for 11 health workers killed last week in a hospital bombing. A spokesperson for Sudan's army command, General Nabil Abdullah, said the strike was carried out by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF); the RSF has not commented.

UN Humanitarian Coordinator Clementine Nkweta-Salami said: "The civilian casualty count is expected to rise; at least 41 people are seriously wounded." Red Cross spokesperson Alyona Synenko told reporters in Geneva that the operational field hospital's transfer capacity is exhausted. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote on X that "the attack targeting civilians is unacceptable."

The UN says 14,800 civilians have died and 12 million have been displaced in Darfur since the conflict reignited in April 2025. African Union Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf has called for an emergency session. The UN Security Council is expected to take up the matter on Friday.