Abyei: 153 dead in drone strike on market, Juba summons Sudanese ambassador

At least 153 people were killed by a drone strike on a market located north of the town of Abyei, a territory disputed between Sudan and South Sudan, on October 19, 2026, around midday. The death toll, initially set at 73, was revised upward on October 20 by Yohana Akol Ngor, Abyei's acting Minister of Information, who stated it is still likely to rise.

Some bodies were reduced to ashes: "the fire is still burning," Mr. Ngor told Reuters. Approximately 8,000 people have been displaced, according to him. Doctors Without Borders is treating more than twenty wounded, including burn victims, at Ameth Bek Hospital, said Christian Lindauer, the organization's head of medical activities on the ground.

A fuel depot at the heart of the market

Three diplomatic sources, a humanitarian worker, and a conflict specialist interviewed by Reuters state that the strike hit a fuel depot in the market, where the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) were allegedly sourcing supplies, according to these diplomats. Mr. Ngor blames the Sudanese army, without providing evidence; neither the army nor the RSF responded to the agency. Khartoum asserts that the RSF is present in Abyei, which the minister denies; Reuters could not verify either version. An anonymous witness said they saw no fighters in uniform at the market.

Fifteen years without status

Abyei, which is rich in oil, has been jointly administered by Khartoum and Juba since South Sudan's independence in 2011 and is claimed by both capitals. In May, the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) warned that the delay in deciding the territory's final status was putting civilians and peacekeepers at risk. It is this decision, which was never made, that the people at the market have paid for.

The South Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Sudanese ambassador to protest, while reiterating that Juba is not taking sides in the war. In New York, UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric condemned these attacks: "We remain alarmed by the incessant drone attacks."

A war spilling over its fronts

Drone attacks in recent days have left more than 250 people dead, according to a Reuters tally: 84 killed on October 18, 2026, in West Kordofan according to a local emergency response room, and 23 at a market in Nyala. Chad has also accused the Sudanese army of strikes on its territory.

The war, which began in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and the RSF, is now largely being fought with drones, far from the front lines. In Abyei, where neither of the two belligerents admits to fighting, the status of the territory remains pending.