KAUDA – The Sudan Doctors Network said more than 21 people, including women and children, were killed and others injured in an attack by forces of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu on areas inhabited by the Atoro community in South Kordofan.
The medical group said the attack targeted Debi and Luweri, south and west of Kauda, and caused the displacement of large numbers of civilians from the area.
The Sudan Doctors Network condemned what it described as attacks by SPLM-N Al-Hilu forces on Atoro areas, saying they came after a ceasefire agreement and represented a clear violation of the truce.
The group said the renewed fighting amounted to the targeting of civilians on an ethnic basis and a serious violation of international humanitarian law and civilian protection obligations.
Sudan Now could not independently verify the death toll, the circumstances of the attack or whether civilians were targeted on ethnic grounds. The SPLM-N Al-Hilu did not immediately comment on the accusation.
The reported attack comes amid escalating tensions around Kauda between SPLM-N Al-Hilu forces and Atoro-linked groups, following weeks of competing claims over responsibility for violence, displacement and abuses in the Nuba Mountains.
Local Atoro representatives and civil groups have accused the SPLM-N of attacking communities and attempting to impose control over areas south and west of Kauda. The SPLM-N has previously said its operations targeted armed mutineers and denied targeting the Atoro community as a whole.
The dispute has deepened fears of wider communal violence in South Kordofan, where years of conflict, militarization and weak humanitarian access have left civilians exposed to renewed displacement and severe shortages of food, health care and shelter.
The Sudan Doctors Network called on the international community and regional and international organizations to pressure SPLM-N Al-Hilu forces and their leadership to stop the violations and comply with the ceasefire agreement.
It warned that the collapse of the ceasefire and renewed ethnically driven fighting could trigger a new wave of displacement among communities around Kauda.
The group said the situation is especially dangerous during the rainy season, when movement becomes more difficult and humanitarian access is further restricted.
It warned that continued fighting could worsen the humanitarian situation and lead to a broader crisis requiring urgent action by international and humanitarian organizations.
