According to an armed group that controls the mountainous Jebel Marra area in Sudan’s Darfur region, a landslide destroyed a village, killing at least 1,000 people and leaving only one survivor. The devastating event struck Tarseen village on August 31, following a week of heavy rainfall.
The Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A), which governs an autonomous part of Jebel Marra, issued a statement appealing to the United Nations and international aid agencies for help in recovering the bodies of the victims, including men, women, and children. The statement lamented, “Tarseen, famed for its citrus production, has now been completely leveled to the ground.”
The SLM/A has maintained a neutral stance in Sudan’s civil war, which is being fought between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The two factions are currently battling for control of al-Fashir, the capital of North Darfur, which is under siege from the RSF and suffering from famine.
Residents from al-Fashir and surrounding areas have sought refuge in Jebel Marra, but resources are scarce, with insufficient food, shelter, and medical supplies. Hundreds of thousands have been exposed to the rains, and Tawila, where most have arrived, is in the midst of a cholera outbreak. The two-year civil war has left more than half of Sudan’s population facing crisis levels of hunger and displaced millions, leaving them vulnerable to the country’s damaging annual floods.
Sudan’s army-controlled government expressed its condolences and willingness to assist. The newly-installed RSF-controlled government, which controls the areas surrounding Jebel Marra, did not immediately comment.
