Drone strikes hit market in disputed Sudan-South Sudan Abyei area, killing dozens of civilians; U.N. chief says "There will need to be accountability"

ABYEI (SUDAN-SOUTH SUDAN BORDER)

Drone strikes hit the Amiet market and the Todach area in Abyei, a region over which Sudan and South Sudan both claim sovereignty, on the 19th (local time), killing dozens of civilians, including women and children. In a statement issued in New York on the 20th, the U.N. secretary-general strongly condemned the attacks and said, "There will need to be accountability."

U.N. secretary-general says "dozens of civilians" killed, calls for accountability

The secretary-general's statement was issued in New York on the 20th and posted on the website of the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA), which is stationed in Abyei, on the 21st. The statement consists of three paragraphs.

In the first paragraph, the secretary-general said, "I strongly condemn the drone attacks in the Abyei area on 19 October that killed dozens of civilians." He said women and children were among the dead and that others were injured. He identified the strike locations as the Amiet market and the vicinity of Todach. He added that UNISFA was continuing to verify casualties and that many people were missing, and that "The toll is expected to rise." He extended his deep condolences to the bereaved families and wished the injured a speedy recovery.

The second paragraph described UNISFA's response. Immediately after the attacks, UNISFA sent medical personnel, firefighting equipment and quick reaction forces to the scene to treat the wounded, help with evacuations and keep fires from spreading.

In the third paragraph, the secretary-general stated firmly, "Attacks targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure are prohibited under international law." He went on to say that all parties to the conflict must respect and protect civilians, and that "There will need to be accountability." He urged the governments of South Sudan and Sudan to prevent further attacks and uphold Abyei's demilitarized status.

The secretary-general did not give a specific death toll or say who carried out the attacks.

26 people were killed at Amiet market a month earlier

The Amiet market was also the scene of bloodshed last month. In an Arabic-language press release issued in Abyei on Sept. 17, UNISFA said violence at the Amiet common market on Sept. 15 had left 26 people dead and 82 injured as of the 16th. The original reads, "حتى 16 سبتمبر، عن مقتل 26 شخصًا وإصابة 82 آخرين" (as of Sept. 16, 26 people killed and 82 others injured).

According to UNISFA, the violence began with two killings. Tensions between the two communities rose after a Ngok Dinka man was killed on Sept. 14 and a Misseriya man on the 15th. UNISFA deployed additional troops to the market and surrounding area and called on the relevant authorities to swiftly investigate and establish accountability. UNISFA commander Ganesh Kumar Shrestha said community leaders had recommitted to continuing dialogue, naming the protection of civilians and the prevention of reprisals as top priorities.

Earlier, on Sept. 2, UNISFA said it was "deeply concerned about recent heightened tensions between the Ngok Dinka and Twic Dinka communities" in southern Abyei. Reports of armed youth being mobilized in both communities followed, and UNISFA stepped up patrols in the south. The two communities clashed for two years from 2022, killing civilians on both sides and displacing large numbers of people.

Six U.N. peacekeepers were killed in drone attack last December

Drone attacks have not spared U.N. peacekeepers either. On Dec. 13 last year, a drone attack on the UNISFA logistics base in Kadugli, South Kordofan state, Sudan, killed six peacekeepers from Bangladesh. In a statement issued in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, that day, the secretary-general put the number of injured at eight, and the U.N. Security Council and UNISFA later counted nine injured. U.N. Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said at the time that it was not clear who had carried out the attack. The secretary-general said attacks on peacekeepers may constitute war crimes under international law and called on the parties to Sudan's civil war to immediately cease hostilities and resume negotiations for a lasting ceasefire. A farewell ceremony for the six was held at UNISFA headquarters in Abyei, and Robert Yaw Affram, then acting head of mission and force commander, visited the Kadugli base.

In a Dec. 21 press statement issued in the name of Council President Samuel Žbogar (Slovenia), the Security Council condemned the attack "in the strongest terms." It said the attack showed "egregious disregard" for international law and posed a serious threat to international peace and security, and demanded that those responsible be held accountable "without delay." Citing resolutions 2518 (2020) and 2589 (2021), the Security Council asked the United Nations for a swift investigation and urged Sudan and South Sudan to fully support UNISFA. The Security Council welcomed medical support from the Sudanese Armed Forces that helped treat the wounded. African Union (AU) Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf also condemned the attack on Dec. 14 and called for those responsible to be swiftly identified.

UNISFA vacates border monitoring bases one after another

UNISFA decided on Dec. 18 to withdraw from the Kadugli base. According to a report of the U.N. secretary-general (S/2026/378), UNISFA moved all personnel out of Kadugli and closed the base on Dec. 21. In a Dec. 24 press release, UNISFA said it had completed over the weekend the withdrawal from the base after "nearly thirteen years of operations." The Kadugli base was the headquarters of the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism (JBVMM), which monitors the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone (SDBZ) agreed by the two countries in 2012. Eight of the nine injured were taken to hospitals in Nairobi, Kenya.

The withdrawals continued. UNISFA announced on March 7 this year that it had pulled all peacekeepers and national monitors out of its bases in Tishwin and Abu Qussa/Wunkur. The reason given was that security in the two areas had become "increasingly volatile and unpredictable," severely constraining force protection and resupply. The last convoy arrived in Abyei on March 6, and JBVMM headquarters was temporarily moved to Abyei.

Security Council has called for demilitarization of Abyei

Abyei is an area claimed by both countries. UNISFA was established in 2011 and has close to 4,000 military and police personnel working alongside civilian staff. Its mandate includes protecting civilians, supporting the Abyei police and facilitating humanitarian assistance.

On Nov. 14, 2024, the Security Council adopted Resolution 2760 by a vote of 14 in favor, none against and one abstention (Russia), extending UNISFA's mandate until Nov. 15, 2025. The resolution called on the relevant authorities of Sudan and South Sudan to take all necessary steps to ensure that Abyei is "effectively demilitarized." It condemned "in the strongest terms" the increased deployment of the South Sudan People's Defence Forces (SSPDF) in Abyei and demanded their immediate redeployment without preconditions.

Security Council extended mandate by a year last year, leaving open possibility of withdrawal

At its 10042nd meeting on Nov. 14 last year, the Security Council adopted Resolution 2802 by a vote of 12 in favor, none against and three abstentions, extending UNISFA's mandate by one year until Nov. 15 this year. China, Pakistan and Russia abstained. The resolution, adopted under Chapter VII of the U.N. Charter, also extended UNISFA's support for the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism (JBVMM) until the same date.

The resolution kept the troop ceiling at 3,250. It also kept the police ceiling at 640, including 148 individual police and corrections officers and three formed police units. The Security Council condemned in the strongest terms violations of the 2011 agreement by armed actors including the SSPDF, other South Sudanese security personnel and Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF), and strongly urged their immediate and unconditional withdrawal from the demilitarized zone.

Conditions were attached to any further extension. The resolution set out five benchmarks: the withdrawal of unauthorized armed forces and full demilitarization of Abyei; the resumption of meetings of the two countries' Joint Political and Security Mechanism (JPSM); the creation of a joint Abyei police service and the establishment of interim administrative and security arrangements by September 2026; the issuance of visas for the deployment of 640 police; and support for the swift appointment of the mission's civilian deputy head. The Security Council said it would consider an extension only if the two countries showed clear progress. It also signaled that it would withdraw or reconfigure the mission if there was no substantive progress. Support for the JBVMM would likewise depend on whether the mechanism becomes fully operational and the two countries continue to cooperate. The secretary-general was asked to submit consolidated reports on May 1 and Oct. 15 this year and to report on the local security situation by Aug. 31, including a comprehensive assessment of the security impact of options for reducing the mission.