Air strike on miners in Sudan near Egypt border; over 160 reported dead, toll unconfirmed
Reports say more than 160 people died in an air strike on miners in Sudan's border region, but the toll has not been independently verified and other counts are far lower.
Images are not validated/verified
The conflict in Sudan has taken a more terrifying turn. Conditions in the area have become extremely grim after an air strike that is alleged to have targeted ordinary people who earn a living by mining. Reports say more than 160 people died in the attack. Bodies, wrecked vehicles and burnt objects are visible at the site, and the question of the safety of civilians has been raised again.
Differing claims about the death toll have emerged. The Sudanese human rights group Emergency Lawyers initially said at least 72 civilians had died. Workers who survived at the site have said the number of dead is more than 200.
The Sudan Doctors Network had initially reported 13 deaths and 28 injured. The reports of more than 160 deaths have therefore not yet been independently confirmed. Because the area is remote and medical facilities are inadequate, there are difficulties in carrying out rescue work and establishing a firm count of the dead.
The army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been fighting in Sudan since April 2023. The war has badly damaged the country's economy and poverty is growing. Millions of civilians are struggling to find work and make ends meet. Earnings from gold mining have become a lifeline for many.
However, tension and conflict over the gold trade appear to be rising. The latest air strike has created a climate of deep fear among people in the border area. Civilians caught in the war are now losing their lives at their workplaces as well. Concern is being voiced internationally over the matter, but no concrete step towards a solution is visible for now.
The area that was attacked is near the disputed border region between Egypt and Sudan. Both countries claim the Halaib Triangle in particular, so control over the area's natural resources is also a cause of their dispute. Egypt had also carried out military action against illegal mining and smuggling in the same area in June 2026.
At that time, the detention of 223 people was announced. There are very large gold reserves in the border area between Sudan and Egypt. Egypt objects that thousands of workers are mining in the area without permission. The matter is thus not just about one air strike, but a tangled struggle over gold reserves, smuggling and control of border land.
