Warnings of escalating humanitarian and political abuses are mounting in Sudan’s North Kordofan state following the recapture of several towns and rural areas by the Sudanese Armed Forces and allied Islamist militias.
Local reports allege that civilians in Bara, Umm Sayala, Jabra al-Sheikh and Umm Girfa are facing a new wave of arrests, intimidation and targeted violence carried out under the pretext of pursuing alleged collaborators.
Armed groups reportedly hunt civilians using prepared lists
According to local activists and field testimonies cited by Sky News Arabia, members of the Islamist Al-Baraa Ibn Malik Corps, mobilisation brigades and SAF special operations units have been conducting house raids in Bara and Umm Sayala.
The forces are said to operate in civilian clothing and masks while relying on lists prepared in advance to identify residents, particularly young people, for arrest or interrogation.
The report alleged that the campaign is also being used to settle political scores with opponents of Sudan’s Islamist movement, anti-war activists and participants in the December Revolution.
Those targeted reportedly include young men and women active in civilian groups calling for an end to the conflict.
The alleged abuses follow a pattern previously reported after SAF entered areas in Khartoum, Gezira and Sennar states, where civilians accused army-aligned forces of carrying out reprisals, arbitrary detentions and killings.
Chemical weapons allegations emerge after airstrikes
Separate rights and political groups have accused SAF aircraft of using internationally prohibited chemical agents during recent strikes on villages in North Kordofan.
The United Civil Forces, known as Qimam, and the Frontline Radar platform alleged that Antonov aircraft bombed Umm Girfa and the villages of al-Hariz, al-Hamadab, Wad Musa and al-Markha.
Witnesses cited in the reports said explosive barrels or projectiles released thick yellow smoke and unidentified gases after impact.
The strikes were reported to have killed women and children and contaminated homes and marketplaces.
The allegations have not been independently verified, and no laboratory evidence or internationally recognised investigation was cited in the reports. However, the groups said the accounts warranted an urgent independent inquiry into the possible use of prohibited weapons.
Looting and killings alleged in El-Obeid
In the North Kordofan capital, El-Obeid, field sources cited by the Hafryat news platform accused members of Islamist mobilisation brigades of widespread looting and the killing of civilians after consolidating control of the city.
Army-aligned forces later moved towards Umm Saadoun, al-Murra, Bara and al-Mazroub, where reports said dozens of people were killed or wounded and civilian property was damaged.
The exact number of casualties could not be independently confirmed.
Disinformation campaign accused of concealing abuses
The report also accused Islamist-linked media networks of launching coordinated disinformation campaigns to obscure alleged violations and deflect responsibility.
It said misleading photographs, fabricated videos and unverified claims were being circulated to blame other parties for crimes and intimidate those demanding independent investigations.
Rights advocates say the allegations from North Kordofan underscore the need for impartial investigations into abuses by all armed actors, including SAF units and Islamist militias operating alongside the army.
Neither the Sudanese army nor the groups accused in the report had issued an immediate public response to the specific allegations.
