SAF Airstrike on Balila Market and Water Source Kills 10 in Kurmuk Locality, Blue Nile State

Sudanese Armed Forces conducted a drone/aerial strike on the Balila market area and a nearby water source in Kurmuk locality, Blue Nile State on May 4, 2026, killing at least 7–10 people and injuring 20 others, mostly women and children. The SPLM-N El Hilu (Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North, al-Hilu faction), which controls Kurmuk jointly with the RSF since the joint capture of the town on March 23, 2026, condemned the attack in a formal statement, reporting 10 killed and 20 injured. Assayha newspaper reported at least 7 killed. Fires broke out in market stalls and water infrastructure was also destroyed, according to Dabanga Radio TV Online. Livestock were also killed. Kurmuk locality in southeastern Blue Nile State, near the Ethiopia and South Sudan borders, has been an active frontline since RSF-SPLM-N forces seized Kurmuk on March 23, 2026 — when approximately 73,000 civilians fled and SAF's 16th Brigade withdrew. SAF has been conducting airstrikes against RSF-SPLM-N positions across Blue Nile State since the fall of Kurmuk, aiming to slow their push toward Ed Damazin and the Roseires Dam. SAF's 4th Infantry Division retook Muqja Station (April 21, 2026), partially restoring the Kurmuk–Damazin supply axis, but fighting continues across the Kurmuk locality. The strike on Balila market is in keeping with SAF's pattern of striking civilian and economic infrastructure in RSF-SPLM-N-controlled areas of Blue Nile State.