The Sudanese Armed Forces have once again turned their sights—and their bombs—on civilians. Human Rights Watch has released a damning report documenting airstrikes in Nyala, South Darfur, in early February 2025 that killed and injured scores of people, in what appear to be war crimes.
Nyala, a city that once housed over 800,000 people, has been repeatedly targeted since the RSF seized control in late 2023. The report notes that the military has launched “indiscriminate attacks” using unguided, high-explosive bombs dropped from aircraft. “These attacks have killed scores of men, women, and children, destroyed families, and caused fear and displacement,” said Jean-Baptiste Gallopin, senior crisis, conflict and arms researcher at Human Rights Watch.
The February 3 strikes were particularly lethal. Witnesses described a single large aircraft—“like a cargo plane”—circling the city before dropping its deadly payload. “I saw the airplane circling around the city,” one man recalled. “It struck on its second circle around the city.” Another survivor added, “The time between the two strikes wasn’t long, maybe one or two minutes—the plane hits, takes a turn, and then hits again.”
Doctors Without Borders reported that at least 32 people were killed and dozens more wounded in the February 3 attacks. Photographs of bomb fragments confirm that the military used OFAB-250 bombs—unguided, high-explosive devices notorious for their wide-area blast effects—and FAB-series general purpose bombs. Human Rights Watch identified these munitions in two of the strikes, which obliterated streets teeming with people.
A man who arrived at the scene of a particularly deadly strike near the Mecca Eye Hospital described the carnage: “The place was completely destroyed and damaged by the airstrike. Many people were killed. One [among the dead] was an [older] lady… and the passengers in a Toyota vehicle, and people passing by.” In this single incident, he estimated that more than 35 people were killed.
ACLED data paints an even grimmer picture: between 2 and 4 February, they estimate 51 to 74 civilians were killed, with scores more injured. Médecins Sans Frontières reported that at least 25 people were killed in further strikes on 4 February alone, including one that hit a peanut oil factory, injuring 21 people who were rushed to the Nyala Teaching Hospital.
Human Rights Watch said that the use of such munitions in crowded urban areas “violates international humanitarian law” because they cannot be precisely aimed at military targets, making their use in densely populated areas inherently indiscriminate. “Deliberately or recklessly conducting indiscriminate attacks is a war crime,” the report said. Even when military targets—such as RSF fighters around the Nyala airport—are present, the presence of civilians imposes a legal duty on attacking forces to avoid or at least minimise civilian harm.
Medical care for the wounded is another tragedy compounding the bombings. Human Rights Watch interviewed four witnesses who said they were unable to get treatment to remove bomb fragments from their bodies, either because they could not afford it or because there were no qualified doctors available.
The airstrikes have not abated. Conflict monitors documented at least 41 days of airstrikes on Nyala between December 2024 and February 2025—often several strikes in a single day. Local media reports that the RSF’s use of the Nyala airport as a drone base and landing point for large cargo planes has made the area a legitimate military target. However, the airstrikes have consistently hit civilian areas far beyond legitimate military objectives.
For civilians, the terror is unrelenting. “The airstrikes are the worst,” said a daily labourer whose sister and nephew were killed in the February 3 strikes. “When it comes to bullets, people can avoid them and take cover from them, but we cannot take cover from airstrikes. They are too powerful.”
Human Rights Watch has urged the Sudanese Armed Forces to end all indiscriminate attacks immediately. It has also called on other governments to follow the EU’s lead in sanctioning Sudanese air force commanders, and to ensure international monitors have access to investigate these war crimes. “Despite international expressions of concern, civilians continue to bear the brunt of Sudan’s devastating two-year-old war,” Gallopin said. “Other countries need to take concerted action to protect civilians and prevent further indiscriminate attacks by investigating and sanctioning those responsible on all sides.”
As the war rages on, Sudan’s skies have become as deadly as its streets—and the international community must not look away.
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