Over 150 dead in drone strikes blamed on Sudanese army in disputed Abyei
Drone strikes on a market in the disputed Abyei administrative area on Monday 19 October killed more than 150 people, according to Yohana Akol Ngor, spokesperson for local authorities, cited in South Sudanese press. The chief administrator of Abyei, Justice Charles Abyei Jok, said most victims were Sudanese traders and that South Sudanese nationals and three Somalis were also killed, denouncing 22 strikes on a densely populated commercial zone. South Sudan's foreign ministry condemned the attack and summoned the Sudanese ambassador in Juba, while the strikes were attributed to the Sudanese army, at war with the Rapid Support Forces for more than three years.
Why it matters: The strike shows the Sudan conflict reaching the disputed, oil-rich Abyei area and threatening a cross-border supply route.