The war in Sudan continues to escalate, with the strategically important town of El Obeid in North Kordofan facing relentless drone strikes by advancing paramilitary militias, according to the UN’s human rights chief, Volker Türk.

Speaking at the Human Rights Council in Geneva on July 3, 2026, Türk called for urgent action from world leaders to halt the heavy fighting that has already triggered a massive humanitarian emergency in Sudan and beyond. His office documented 15 drone strikes on El Obeid and surrounding areas, resulting in at least 45 civilian deaths.

The lethal autonomous weapons, deployed by former allies—the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and the national Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF)—have repeatedly targeted markets, schools, fuel stations, water infrastructure, and civilian vehicles, creating terror among the besieged population.

Türk’s warning follows previous atrocities, including a three-day rampage last October in the besieged North Darfur city of El Fasher, where 6,000 people were killed in war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Addressing the Human Rights Council’s 47 Member States, Türk emphasized that the "red alert" issued is not a drill and must reach the desks of heads of state and government worldwide. He urged the UN Security Council to fulfill its responsibilities in preventing atrocity crimes, highlighting El Obeid as a case demonstrating why the use of veto power should be limited, as proposed by France and Mexico over a decade ago.

The UN agency has recorded more than 100 incidents causing forced displacement in less than nine months, averaging one major incident every two to three days. Families are being uprooted faster than humanitarian assistance can reach them.

Aid access to residents in El Obeid has been blocked for two months. Türk stated, "We cannot access them. We hear the stories from our enumerators on the ground who are assessing the needs that they have no access to water, electricity and they want a way out, but they cannot."

Sudan’s representative to the council, Salim Ahmed Ibrahim, delivered a defiant message: "For your information I am from El Obeid; this wounded city, it will never fall, as long as we are alive."

Sources