At least 18 civilians have been killed and dozens more wounded in an RSF attack on Um Arada, a village roughly 15 kilometres southwest of El Obeid, capital of Sudan’s North Kordofan state. The assault struck at dawn and marks the latest escalation in fighting across North Kordofan.
Sudanese volunteer group Emergency Lawyers said the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces launched the RSF attack on Um Arada late Friday night and into the early hours of Saturday. The group initially reported 14 deaths and dozens of injuries, while residents fled the area amid worsening humanitarian conditions.
A medical source at El Obeid Hospital said the facility had received at least 12 bodies and around 15 wounded patients following the RSF attack on Um Arada. More casualties were still arriving as the day progressed, placing additional pressure on already stretched medical staff and resources.
Sudan Tribune also reported that at least 18 civilians were killed in the RSF attack on Um Arada, citing local and medical sources. The outlet said dozens more residents were wounded during the assault.
The RSF’s role in the assault has not gone unchallenged. Officials offered competing accounts of the RSF attack on Um Arada, with Sudanese military sources claiming army units and allied forces repelled the attackers and inflicted heavy losses. The differing versions of events could not be independently verified.
Sudan Tribune reported that the RSF attack on Um Arada formed part of a wider dawn offensive across the area. RSF fighters reportedly advanced towards positions around the village and the nearby Hashaba Hills. Army artillery stationed around El Obeid responded with sustained shelling, sending explosions echoing across the city well into the morning. Military sources told the outlet that government forces beat back two separate assaults using artillery and drone strikes to destroy vehicles and disperse fighters.
The RSF attack on Um Arada came a day after the Sudanese army said it had repulsed a much larger RSF assault at Jabrat al-Sheikh. That town lies roughly 170 kilometres northeast of El Obeid on the strategic Exports Road. Military sources estimated the attacking force at around 250 vehicles.
The RSF has intensified operations across North Kordofan in recent weeks as it seeks to regain territory lost in late July, when government troops recaptured several towns and reopened the highway linking the region to central Sudan.
El Obeid remains one of the most strategically important cities in Sudan’s civil war. The city hosts North Kordofan’s only airport and sits at a crucial crossroads connecting Khartoum to the western Darfur region. Both the Sudanese army and the RSF have fought over control of the city since the conflict erupted in April 2023.
The city endured a lengthy RSF siege before government forces broke the blockade in February 2025. Since then, the paramilitary group has renewed pressure through repeated drone strikes and ground offensives. Analysts say the RSF attack on Um Arada reflects the group’s broader effort to threaten El Obeid and disrupt army supply routes.
Emergency Lawyers has spent much of the past three years documenting rights violations across Sudan’s Kordofan region, where access for independent journalists and aid workers remains severely restricted. Following the RSF attack on Um Arada, the group reported widespread fear among residents, with families abandoning their homes and heading towards El Obeid on foot carrying whatever belongings they could manage.
Humanitarian agencies have repeatedly warned that North Kordofan’s rural communities are among the most vulnerable populations affected by Sudan’s war. Many villages were already struggling with shortages of clean water, healthcare and food supplies before the latest violence erupted.
The casualties from the RSF attack on Um Arada have placed further strain on El Obeid Hospital, which local staff say has been operating near capacity due to weeks of fighting along key transport routes.
Sudan’s conflict has displaced millions of people and killed tens of thousands since April 2023, creating what the United Nations describes as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. As bodies and wounded civilians continued arriving at El Obeid Hospital on Friday, families around the village were left grappling with the aftermath of the RSF attack on Um Arada, an assault whose full human cost may not be known for several days.
