At least 1,000 killed in Sudan landslide, rebel group says

A devastating natural disaster has compounded the already dire humanitarian crisis in Sudan, with a massive landslide in the western Darfur region reportedly killing more than 1,000 people. According to a statement from the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A), a rebel group that controls the area, the catastrophic event occurred in the village of Tarasin, located in the Marra Mountains, on Sunday, September 1st, after days of relentless heavy rainfall. The group, which has mostly remained outside of the main civil war, reported that the landslide was so severe it "completely leveled" the village, leaving only a single survivor. The statement paints a harrowing picture of a community wiped from the face of the earth, with the number of deceased individuals estimated to be the entire population of the small mountain settlement.
The Marra Mountains, a rugged and often inaccessible area, have become a refuge for many Sudanese civilians fleeing the brutal conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). These displaced families, already living in a state of extreme vulnerability with insufficient access to food, medicine, and basic shelter, were seeking safety from the violence that has engulfed their country. The landslide serves as a grim reminder of the compounding threats facing the Sudanese people, where the dangers of conflict and hunger are now exacerbated by the perilous conditions of their displacement. The SLM/A's report, while not independently verified by international organizations due to the ongoing fighting, provides the first and most detailed account of the tragedy.
The Darfur region, in particular, has been a focal point of the ongoing civil war, which erupted in April 2023. The conflict has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths, the displacement of millions, and has plunged the nation into one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. Famine has been declared in parts of Darfur, and the escalation of fighting, especially in the city of El Fasher, has severely hampered the delivery of urgent humanitarian assistance. This lack of access means that aid organizations and official government bodies have been unable to reach the site of the landslide, making it impossible to confirm the death toll or provide any form of relief or recovery efforts. The reported death of over 1,000 people, if confirmed, would represent one of the single deadliest natural disasters in the country's recent history.
The leader of the SLM/A, Abdelwahid Mohamed Nour, has issued a desperate plea for international assistance, urging the United Nations and other global aid agencies to intervene immediately. In his statement, he highlighted the immense scale of the tragedy, stating that it "goes beyond the borders of the region" and is "greater than what our people can bear alone." The call to action is not just for the recovery of bodies, but for the world to acknowledge the unimaginable suffering and compounded crises faced by the Sudanese people. The victims, who are believed to include men, women, and children, now lie buried under a mountain of earth and debris, a silent testament to a disaster that has unfolded far from the gaze of the world's media and international observers. The sheer isolation of the area, a byproduct of the civil war, has turned a natural event into a humanitarian catastrophe of epic proportions.
The situation in Sudan is a complex and multilayered tragedy. The civil war has already decimated infrastructure, destroyed livelihoods, and created an environment of lawlessness and instability. Displaced populations, in their desperate search for safety, are often forced into precarious locations that offer little protection from the elements or natural hazards. The Marra Mountains, with their difficult terrain and remoteness, were seen as a sanctuary from the fighting, but have now proven to be the site of a disaster that rivals the human toll of the war itself. The reported landslide, in its swift and brutal finality, has tragically underscored the profound vulnerability of those caught in the crossfire. The international community, which has long been focused on the political and military dimensions of the Sudanese conflict, is now faced with a new, urgent humanitarian demand that requires a coordinated and immediate response. The full scope of the disaster may not be known for some time, but the initial reports from the SLM/A paint a picture of a nation already on the brink, now pushed further into the abyss of sorrow and loss.
Source@BBC