FFM Mandate Renewed as Violence Spreads Across Sudan and the Horn of Africa

Geneva – On October 5th, the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted Resolution A/HRC/63/L.26, extending the mandate of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission in Sudan for an additional year.1 Member States additionally called for an immediate ceasefire and implementation of a civilian-led government. This Fact-Finding Mission is instrumental in  gathering evidence, documenting instances of crimes against humanity, and identifying those responsible for perpetuating mass atrocities. The vote passed 28-10 with nine abstentions, including Ethiopia, Sudan, and Burundi.2  Darfur Women Action Group calls on the international community and UN Member States to fully support the Mission’s mandate, and ensure it has not only the political backing, but the necessary resources needed to carry out this work across Sudan.

Increasing Displacement, Deteriorating Security and Humanitarian Conditions in Blue Nile, Kordofan, and Darfur

The deteriorating security, humanitarian, and environmental conditions across Blue Nile, Kordofan, and Darfur have increased the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) seeking shelter across the country, and escalations between the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) place civilians at significant risk. Recently, 1,400 people fled to  Tawila after escaping violence, drought, and famine due to the rain shortage in North Darfur, increasing the number of those seeking refuge to over 6,000 since September.3 Moreover, those living in IDP camps face widespread insecurity and violence. On September 30th, a drone strike targeted a displacement camp in El-Obeid, killing one child and injuring twelve others. The RSF and SAF continue to target civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, educational facilities, and critical infrastructure – such as water and fuel depots. Drone attacks have grown more frequent, particularly during the rainy season, and UN figures estimate drones have killed 1,100 civilians in the first five months of the year alone.4 Recently, a drone strike targeted a University of Kordofan dormitory in El-Obeid, killing five civilians and injuring forty-seven others. The UN Fact-Finding Mission has documented widespread violations by both the RSF and SAF, while finding particularly grave patterns of deliberate attacks against civilians and other atrocities by the RSF.

Targeting Humanitarian Workers and Aid Convoys Increased

Recently attacks on aid workers and aid convoys by the RSF have sharply increased. Those on the frontline – including humanitarian aid workers and displaced civilians – face deliberate targeting by the RSF, as the RSF continues to use drone attacks, systemic starvation and blockades to expand its territorial control, which has contributed to mass killing and limited the flow of humanitarian aid delivery. On October 3rd, an aerial strike targeted two UN World Food Programme (WPF) trucks delivering humanitarian aid between Dilling and Kadugli, where one driver was killed and several others injured. This event occurred one day after another explosive device struck a WPF truck in Dilling.5 The UN stated that the trucks were clearly marked as humanitarian vehicles. This represents the seventeenth truck destroyed and eighth WPF driver killed in the last two years.6 This attack has drawn widespread condemnation from the international community, marking a troubling escalation in attacks against humanitarian workers and aid delivery trucks. The systemic and deliberate weaponization of humanitarian aid constitutes a crime against humanity under international law.

The Crisis in Ethiopia is an Alarming Regional Security Risk

On September 23rd, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and allied opposition groups launched attacks against Ethiopian troops and targeted airports in Tigray. This situation is increasingly alarming, as renewed conflict leads to an increased risk of mass atrocities. It has also increased the security risk for many Sudanese who have sought refuge in Ethiopia and have nowhere to go. The Tigray War (2020-2022) between the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) and the TPLF took the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, and both Ethiopia and Eritrea were accused of mass atrocities, genocide, and sexual violence. Eritrea cut diplomatic ties with Ethiopia on October 1st, potentially escalating the risk of interstate and cross border war as accusations and tensions between Eritrea and Ethiopia are on the rise. That night, airstrikes were heard across Addis Ababa – Ethiopia’s capital – as rebel groups reportedly targeted Ethiopian military bases. After an ENDF offensive on Sunday, October 4th, rebel forces retreated from the Tigrayan capital, Mekelle. In a dangerous escalation, Eritrean troops are reported to have crossed the border and moved into Tigray, as of October 8th. The renewed fighting risks opening another front in an already volatile region, threatening cross-border displacement, humanitarian access, and exacerbating the risks and endangering civilian safety. 

During the early Tigray war, hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians fled to Sudan and vice versa. Today, however, for those affected by conflict in both countries, there are no options as to where they can flee or seek safety. For the Sudanese, further regional escalation will drive even more displacement, restrict already limited humanitarian access, and place additional pressure on communities facing war, hunger, and insecurity.

We Call On the International Community to Act Now

Darfur Women Action Group urges the United Nations Security Council, the African Union, the United States, the European Union, IGAD, and all international stakeholders to:

• Open Safe Humanitarian Corridors with guaranteed and unobstructed access for food, medical aid, fuel, and emergency lifesaving aid agencies, including cross-border corridors through Chad and other routes, as well as holding the RSF and those who obstruct, attack, or blockade aid access accountable.
• Enforce an Immediate, verified, and Sustained Ceasefire with Civilian Protection Guarantees, for both Sudan and Ethiopia, particularly in El-Fasher, El-Obeid, Darfur, Kordofan, Blue Nile, Afar, Amhara, and Tigray. 
• Expand the Arms Embargo to All of Sudan by cutting the weapons pipeline feeding genocide, including enforcement against all international, regional suppliers and intermediaries known to be arming the RSF.
• Fully resource and support the UN Fact-Finding Mission to document atrocities, secure evidence, and prosecute crimes of genocide, sexual violence, ethnic targeting, and mass starvation as weapons of war.

About DWAG

Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG) is a women-led anti-atrocities nonprofit with a 501(c)(3) status, founded in 2009 by a Darfur genocide survivor to empower and amplify voices of women and the conflict-affected and historically excluded communities in Sudan and the United States of America (USA) to enable them to champion their causes and work collectively to foster sustainable social change.

For inquiries, please contact: outreach@darfurwomenaction.org 

For more resources and to find ways in which you can help, go to: www.darfurwomenaction.org 

Notes 

1. Radio Dabanga, “UN Human Rights Council Extends Mandate of Sudan Fact-Finding Mission,” October 10, 2026, https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/un-human-rights-council-extends-mandate-of-sudan-fact-finding-mission. 
2. Radio Dabanga, “UN Human Rights Council Extends Mandate of Sudan Fact-Finding Mission,” October 10, 2026, https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/un-human-rights-council-extends-mandate-of-sudan-fact-finding-mission. 
3. Radio Dabanga, “North Darfur: Aid Needs Mount as 1,400 Displaced Reached Tawila in Five Days,” October 4, 2026. https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/north-darfur-aid-needs-mount-as-1400-displaced-reach-tawila-in-five-days.
4. Al Jazeera, “Drone Warfare Kills Over 1,000 in Sudan in 2026 as Strikes Multiply: UN,” June 15, 2026, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/6/15/drone-warfare-kills-over-1000-in-sudan-in-2026-as-strikes-multiply-un.  
5. World Food Programme, “WPF Strongly Condemns Attack on Trucks in South Kordofan, Killing One Driver,” October 4, 2026, https://www.wfp.org/news/wfp-strongly-condemns-attack-trucks-south-kordofan-killing-one-driver. 
6. UN News, “Sudan: Driver Killed in Aerial Attack on Aid Trucks in South Kordofan,” October 5, 2026, https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/10/1168519.