Khartoum: A massive landslide has destroyed an entire village in Sudan’s western Darfur region, killing an estimated 1,000 people, according to a statement issued by a rebel group that controls the area.
The Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) said the disaster struck on Sunday in the Marra Mountains of Darfur following several days of torrential rainfall. “Initial information indicates the death of all village residents, estimated to be more than one thousand individuals, with only one survivor,” the group said late on Monday.
The rebels reported that the village had been completely levelled to the ground and appealed to the United Nations and humanitarian organisations for urgent assistance in recovering the bodies of victims, including children.
The reported tragedy comes as Sudan enters the third year of a brutal civil war between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The conflict has triggered one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with famine already declared in parts of Darfur.
The Marra Mountains, where the landslide occurred, had become a refuge for civilians fleeing fighting elsewhere in Darfur. Food and medical supplies in the area are scarce, according to reports.
Factions of the SLM/A, which controls the affected region, have aligned themselves with Sudan’s military against the RSF. Fighting in Darfur has intensified in recent months, particularly in the city of El-Fasher, where the army is battling to hold its last major stronghold in the region.
El-Fasher has been under siege by RSF forces for more than a year. The paramilitary group, which lost control of much of central Sudan earlier this year, including the capital Khartoum, is attempting to consolidate power in the west to establish a rival government.
The rebel group’s appeal underscores the dire humanitarian conditions in Darfur, where millions have already been displaced by conflict and food shortages.
International agencies have yet to confirm the reported death toll from the landslide, but aid groups warn that access to the remote mountain region remains extremely limited.
