El-Koma — A United Nations convoy carrying food aid to Sudan’s war-ravaged North Darfur was attacked late Monday, leaving several people dead and many more injured. Both sides of the country’s civil war are now pointing fingers in a violent blame game, as hunger deepens in the besieged city of El-Fasher.
The assault took place in El-Koma, a small town east of El-Fasher, where the convoy had stopped before making its final stretch. UN officials confirmed the incident but stopped short of naming the perpetrators.
Local sources, however, reported multiple deaths, including UN staff, drivers and civilians.
“This was a direct hit on a humanitarian mission,” said a UN spokesperson in Nairobi. “We are still verifying the full extent of the casualties.”
The Sudanese army quickly accused the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of carrying out the attack. In a statement, the government said “guards, drivers and civilians” were killed and blamed the RSF for the bloodshed.
The RSF denied responsibility and instead claimed the army had launched the strike. In a message posted to social media, RSF spokesman Basha Tabiq said four people travelling with the convoy were killed and two others injured, accusing the Sudanese army of targeting the group with drones.
A Facebook video shared by the El-Koma Emergency Room a group of local volunteers showed the charred remains of a UN-branded truck loaded with aid supplies. The group also blamed the army, saying warplanes struck the area over the weekend, killing or injuring at least 89 people.
The Sudanese military has not commented on these claims.
The town of El-Koma, currently under RSF control, has repeatedly been caught in the crossfire of the brutal war between Sudan’s army and the RSF. Both sides have been accused by rights groups of indiscriminate attacks that have killed civilians and crippled key infrastructure.
Monday night’s ambush took place as the convoy prepared to enter El-Fasher, the last major city in North Darfur still held by government forces. The area has become a flashpoint in recent weeks, with aid agencies warning of looming famine. Tens of thousands remain trapped without access to food or medicine.
The UN’s World Food Programme (WFP) had been trying to deliver emergency supplies after multiple warnings that children and the elderly in El-Fasher were dying from hunger.
Sudan has been gripped by civil war since April 2023, when tensions between the RSF and the army erupted into open conflict. The two forces had previously staged a joint coup to derail Sudan’s fragile democratic transition, but soon turned on each other in a violent power struggle.
Since then, more than four million people have fled their homes, according to the UN refugee agency. With aid convoys now under fire, hopes for relief in places like El-Fasher are rapidly fading.
“Humanitarian workers are risking their lives daily,” said Eujin Byun, a spokesperson for the UNHCR. “But the situation is becoming nearly impossible.”
As accusations fly and families mourn the dead, the people of Darfur remain trapped caught in a war that shows no sign of ending.
