Attack on West Darfur Displacement Camp Kills 11 Civilians, Regional Minister Blames RSF
An assault on a displacement camp in Sudan’s West Darfur region has left 11 people dead and five wounded, with a regional minister saying most victims were women and children and accusing Rapid Support Forces fighters of violating international humanitarian law.
Displaced families in Sudan’s West Darfur have been hit again by the conflict they were trying to escape. Regional authorities say fighters from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) attacked a displacement camp in Sirba locality, killing civilians who had already fled earlier violence.
Babiker Hamdeen, West Darfur’s regional health and social welfare minister, said the attack took place on Saturday in a camp hosting people uprooted by the war. He reported 11 dead and five injured, and said that women and children made up most of the casualties.
Hamdeen condemned the assault as a violation of international humanitarian law. His description of the incident as an RSF attack on a camp for displaced people points to an operation aimed at a civilian site rather than cross‑fire from nearby clashes.
Displacement camps are crowded and short on medical care, and residents often have little ability to move quickly when armed groups approach. When a camp is struck, survivors can lose what few belongings they still have, deepening their dependence on outside aid.
Such incidents also affect humanitarian operations. Agencies that deliver food, water and medical supplies to camps rely on at least some respect for civilian spaces. Every attack on a site like Sirba’s camp makes it harder to keep staff in place, increases security costs and forces route changes or delays in deliveries.
The reported RSF role in Sirba adds to wider concerns that civilians in Darfur remain exposed as Sudan’s war continues. West Darfur borders Chad, and violence around camps in the region risks pushing more people toward the frontier or across it as refugees.
For displaced Sudanese in Sirba, Hamdeen’s appeal to international humanitarian law contrasts with the immediate reality that armed groups were able to reach and hit a clearly civilian site. How regional authorities respond, whether any investigation is launched and whether protection around camps is reinforced will be early signals of whether this attack is treated as an isolated case or part of a broader pattern of abuses against some of the most vulnerable people in the conflict.
Sources
- OSINT