A new US human rights report reveals a wide and escalating pattern of air strikes and drone attacks by the Sudanese army against civilians and civilian objects in the Darfur region, indicating that these acts amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The report, issued by The Reckoning Project, a US human rights project specializing in documenting war crimes, crimes against humanity, and serious violations of international humanitarian law, documents 17 air strikes, including drone attacks in Darfur between October 2024 and April 2026, which resulted in the killing and injury of hundreds of civilians and the destruction of markets, hospitals, health centers, residential areas, social events, and displacement sites.

The report is based on testimonies from 31 direct witnesses, in addition to reviewing medical, media, and human rights reports, photos and social media posts, and geolocation data, in an attempt to reconstruct the trajectory of the attacks and determine their nature and impact on local communities.

Bombing of Markets

The report focuses particularly on the bombing of markets, considering them not just commercial sites but centers of daily life where residents obtain food, medicine, transportation, and livelihoods.

Among the most prominent incidents documented is the bombing of Cinema Street in Nyala, South Darfur, on February 3, 2025, where witnesses reported that a white plane believed to belong to the Sudanese army dropped bombs on areas crowded with civilians, including the vicinity of Noor Al-Oyoun Hospital and Cinema Street.

The bombing killed at least 22 civilians, including women, children, and the elderly, injured dozens, and destroyed shops and vehicles.

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The report also documents the bombing of Tora market north of El Fasher on March 24, 2025, on the last days of Ramadan, when the market was packed with shoppers preparing for Eid al-Fitr.

According to the report, the attack attributed to the Sudanese army killed about 450 people, most of them women and children, and injured more than 223 others.

In Al-Koma, North Darfur, the report says the town was subjected to dozens of air strikes, noting that residents live in constant terror from aircraft flyovers.

The report quoted a first responder as saying that "90 percent of the victims of aerial bombing in Al-Koma are civilians."

Targeting of Civilian Facilities

The pattern of attacks, according to the report, is not limited to markets. It documented strikes on health facilities, including Al-Daein Teaching Hospital in East Darfur on March 20, 2026, where the bombing killed dozens of people, including children and medical staff, and destroyed the emergency, maternity, and pediatric departments.

The report notes that satellite imagery analysis showed evidence of precision strikes within the hospital complex, suggesting the use of long-range drones and guided munitions.

It also described a pattern of "double-tap strikes," where the first strike is followed by a second that often targets first responders and civilians rushing to rescue victims.

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The report also covered attacks on social gatherings, including the bombing of a gathering in Katila, South Darfur, in December 2025, where more than 100 civilians were killed, including women and children, according to testimonies cited.

In Kutum, North Darfur, the bombing of a wedding in April 2026 killed between 40 and 56 people, including children, women, and young men.

Systematic Attacks

The report argues that the scale, frequency, timing, and locations of the incidents make it difficult to consider them mere "collateral damage."

The attacks occurred in crowded markets, residential areas, medical facilities, civilian gathering points, and at times when civilians were heavily present.

The report confirms that the use of unguided bombs from aircraft such as the Antonov in densely populated areas likely constitutes indiscriminate attacks violating international humanitarian law.

In cases involving drones, the report argues that the precision of targeting raises more serious questions about the deliberate striking of civilian sites or a manifest disregard for the likely high civilian casualty toll.

The report notes that the Sudanese army has, in most cases, either denied targeting civilians or refrained from commenting, while field testimonies indicate that victims were mostly civilians and that targeted sites were not legitimate military objectives.

Humanitarian Catastrophe

The report concludes that the impact of the bombing extends beyond the number of casualties to the destruction of life networks in Darfur. The bombing of markets destroyed the livelihoods of thousands of families, burned goods, vehicles, and livestock, and disrupted supply movements in areas already suffering from siege, hunger, and service collapse.

The targeting of hospitals and health centers also deprived entire communities of medical care at a time when injuries, displacement, and lack of medicines are increasing.

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Psychologically, the attacks have left a permanent sense of fear among residents, who now expect death with every sound of a plane or drone.

The report quotes witnesses describing scenes of body parts, charred corpses, and searching for relatives amid smoke and destruction, testimonies reflecting the depth of collective trauma experienced by Darfur's population.

Calls for Accountability

The report calls on the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces to immediately halt aerial and drone attacks on civilians and civilian objects, strictly adhere to international humanitarian law, and open the door for independent international investigations.

It also urges the International Criminal Court to investigate aerial and drone strikes against civilians in Darfur and to pursue those responsible for issuing orders or executing attacks.

The report calls on the UN Security Council to activate the arms embargo imposed on Darfur, investigate the sources of weapons and drones used to target civilians, and impose new sanctions on parties and entities involved in violations.

The report stresses the need to support civil society organizations documenting violations, strengthen early warning systems, provide medical and psychological care to survivors and families of victims, and rehabilitate destroyed health facilities.

Impunity

The report paints a grim picture of a region living under the weight of an open aerial war, where planes and drones have become a tool of daily terror against the population.

According to its findings, what is happening in Darfur is not a series of isolated incidents but a repeated pattern of targeting civilians or complete disregard for their lives.

While the Sudanese army continues to deny targeting civilians, the testimonies of victims, images, and field evidence place the international community before a new test: either open independent investigations into these incidents and hold those responsible accountable, or leave Darfur hostage to impunity.