Sudan’s TASIS-backed Government of Peace and Unity has requested an international investigation into the deadly drone attack on Abyei’s Amiet Market, as the military-aligned authorities in Port Sudan denied responsibility for the bombardment.
TASIS Foreign Minister Ammar Amoun Deldoum said his administration had submitted a formal complaint to the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan, seeking an investigation into the October 19 attack.
The complaint accuses forces under Sudanese military chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan of carrying out the strikes, which devastated the market and surrounding commercial facilities in the disputed Abyei region.
According to the TASIS government, the market was hit by approximately 10 guided projectiles allegedly launched from Sudanese military drones. The claim has not been independently verified.
Amoun said the complaint called for investigators to establish responsibility, preserve physical evidence, obtain witness testimony and examine whether international humanitarian law had been violated.
He also requested cooperation with the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA), whose personnel have been assisting victims and documenting damage.
The TASIS government said its preliminary information indicated that at least 200 people had been killed or wounded, including traders from neighbouring and foreign countries. Those figures and the identities of foreign casualties remain unverified.
Port Sudan rejects responsibility
In a statement issued late Thursday, Sudan’s military-aligned Foreign Ministry denied that the Sudanese Armed Forces had carried out the attack.
The ministry expressed condolences to victims’ families but insisted that the military had no involvement in the bombardment.
The denial followed accusations from South Sudanese officials, who blamed Sudan’s military for the strike and summoned the Sudanese ambassador in Juba.
Local Abyei authorities reported that 153 people had died in the attack. Separately, the United Nations reported at least 80 deaths and 27 injuries, while warning that verification remained ongoing.
The UN has not established responsibility for the bombardment.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the attack and called for the protection of civilians and respect for Abyei’s demilitarised status.
UNISFA said its peacekeepers had deployed medical personnel, assisted in evacuating casualties, fought fires and intensified patrols to prevent further violence.
The attack has heightened tensions between Sudan and South Sudan, which both claim the oil-rich Abyei region.
