A drone strike on the first day of Ramadan killed 26 civilians, including 15 children, in Um Rasuma, West Kordofan, as they gathered at a village well for drinking water, rights monitors reported. Fourteen others were wounded in the attack, which occurred around 1:00 p.m. on March 1, 2026.
The strike directly targeted the water source, a location described by the Emergency Lawyers monitoring group as “entirely devoid of any military presence.” Field reports from the Darfur Network for Human Rights corroborate that civilians were collecting water during the afternoon, a routine task that became a scene of carnage. The timing, coinciding with the start of Islam’s holiest month, has drawn specific condemnation.
This incident is part of an escalating pattern of drone warfare in the Kordofan region. Between February 15 and 18, 2026, separate drone attacks killed at least 57 civilians across four Sudanese states. These included strikes on a marketplace in North Kordofan and an internally displaced persons shelter in West Kordofan.
The deliberate targeting of essential civilian infrastructure, such as water sources, is a documented concern. In conflict-affected areas, access to water is limited, forcing predictable gatherings at communal wells and pumps. Rights monitors note that drone operators have real-time visual confirmation, making attacks on such locations a clear violation of international humanitarian law.
West Kordofan is currently under the control of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). However, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) has been attributed responsibility for the drone campaign in RSF-held territories, including the Um Rasuma strike. Both factions are engaged in a strategic battle for control of Sudan’s vital east-west corridor, with Kordofan serving as a primary theater. The RSF’s seizure of El-Fasher in late 2025 preceded an intensification of fighting across the region.
The Emergency Lawyers group has called for an immediate truce during Ramadan to ensure civilian access to water and necessities. The Um Rasuma strike underscores the devastating human cost of the conflict, where basic survival activities have become lethal.
