Sudanese army air strikes kill 10 civilians; RSF-aligned official threatens oil fields
July 13, 2025 (AL-FULA) – At least ten people were killed and others wounded on Sunday in aerial bombardments by the Sudanese army targeting two cities in West Kordofan State.
The strikes prompted a threat from the head of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF)-affiliated civilian authority in the state to shut down and attack the Heglig oil fields if army warplanes continue to target civilians.
Army warplanes have intensified their air sorties over Kordofan in recent weeks, repeatedly bombing cities including Bara, Al-Nahud, Al-Khawi, Al-Mujlad, Al-Fula, and Abu Zabad, causing dozens of civilian casualties.
The West Kordofan State Emergency Room stated in a communiqué that “the bombing by army warplanes on the cities of Al-Fula and Abu Zabad resulted in the killing of six civilians, including children, and the injury of seven others in Abu Zabad.”
It added that four others, including a child, were killed in a similar bombardment that hit Al-Fula, the capital of West Kordofan State.
The statement clarified that the bombings were part of a series of aerial raids on Abu Zabad in recent weeks, which have disrupted daily life, terrorized and displaced civilians, and destroyed infrastructure and service facilities in the area.
RSF-aligned official issues threat
Meanwhile, Youssef Awadallah Aliyan, head of what is known as the Civilian Administration in West Kordofan State, appointed by the RSF, threatened to close and target the oil fields in the Heglig oil region.
The Sudanese army still maintains a significant presence in the Heglig oil area, which borders South Sudan.
“If the army’s aviation returns again and bombs citizens in West Kordofan State, we will strike and shut down Heglig’s oil and kill the engineers,” Aliyan stated while inspecting sites hit by aerial bombardment in Al-Fula market.
He reiterated that the cities of Al-Fula and Abu Zabad have been subjected to aerial bombardment by the army. He stated that seven people were killed in Al-Fula and about 23 wounded in Sunday’s bombing, while eight others were killed in Abu Zabad.
On July 10, two displacement shelters in Abu Zabad were subjected to aerial bombardment. The area’s market has also been targeted at least three times in the past three weeks, causing deaths and injuries among civilians.