SAF Drone Strikes Kill 24+ Civilians in Um Dukhun Market (Central Darfur) and North Kordofan in Single Day

Sudanese Armed Forces drone strikes killed at least 24 people and injured approximately 20 more in Um Dukhun town, Central Darfur, on April 17, 2026. The strikes hit a popular market, a fuel market, and residential neighborhoods in the Buram locality near the Chad border — an area under RSF control. Medical sources in the area reported an entire family of six was killed and that more than 10 additional people had severely burned bodies. Parallel strikes on markets in North Kordofan on the same day brought the combined one-day death toll to at least 44 civilians across both regions, according to Radio Dabanga. The strikes continued the pattern of SAF long-range drone operations against RSF-held civilian areas documented throughout early 2026; since January, UN-documented drone strikes in the Kordofan and Darfur regions have killed approximately 700 civilians including 245 children in Q1 2026 alone (per Amnesty International). Um Dukhun is located near major humanitarian access routes to Central African Republic and Chad, and its market served as a critical supply point for communities throughout Buram locality. The attacks drew renewed condemnation from UN human rights bodies as evidence of systematic targeting of civilian economic infrastructure.