The attacks began on Wednesday evening and continued into Thursday, targeting residential neighborhoods, a funeral gathering and a truck transporting food supplies in the strategically important city in North Kordofan state, according to the Emergency Lawyers group.

The organization, which has documented alleged abuses during the conflict, blamed the strikes on the RSF. The claims could not be independently verified, and the paramilitary force did not immediately comment on the allegations.

Residents described extensive destruction across parts of the city, with homes damaged or destroyed and casualties transported to local hospitals.

One witness in the Al-Matar district in eastern El-Obeid said several houses collapsed after being hit, trapping residents beneath the rubble. Another resident told AFP that a relative was among those killed and that he had seen multiple bodies brought to a nearby medical facility.

A medical source said two children and a woman believed to be their mother were among the dead.

El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, has been partially surrounded by RSF forces for months and remains a key strategic center linking western and eastern Sudan. Control of the wider Kordofan region is viewed as critical because it connects RSF-held territories in Darfur with areas controlled by the Sudanese army.

Drone warfare has become an increasingly significant feature of Sudan’s conflict since fighting erupted in April 2023 between the military and the RSF. The use of unmanned aerial attacks has expanded as both sides seek to strike targets beyond front-line positions.

According to United Nations figures, at least 880 civilians were killed in drone strikes across Sudan between January and April this year.

Military operations have intensified in Kordofan and neighboring Blue Nile state in recent months, particularly following the RSF’s capture of El-Fasher in October 2025, ending the army’s hold on its last major stronghold in western Darfur.

The broader conflict has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced more than 11 million and triggered what the United Nations has described as the world’s largest displacement and hunger crisis.

Community-led peace initiatives are emerging as a potential tool in Nigeria’s struggle against bandit violence, with some local leaders reporting improvements in security after negotiating directly with armed groups that have terrorized large areas of the country’s northwest.

One of the most prominent examples comes from Kurfi, a local government area in Katsina State, where a peace agreement brokered by community figures has brought what residents describe as a period of relative stability following years of attacks, kidnappings and displacement.

Dayyabu Abba-Kurfi, a civil servant and local politician, played a central role in negotiating the agreement in August 2025 between residents and bandit groups operating in the area. Abba-Kurfi, known locally by the nickname “Doncaster,” earned during his school football days in the 1980s, said the arrangement has allowed many residents to begin rebuilding lives disrupted by years of insecurity.

The initiative reflects growing frustration among communities that have endured repeated violence despite extensive security operations by Nigerian authorities. While federal and state governments continue military campaigns against armed groups, some local leaders argue that dialogue and community engagement can complement conventional security responses.

Banditry has become one of Nigeria’s most serious security challenges over the past decade. Criminal groups operating primarily in northwestern states have carried out kidnappings, extortion, cattle rustling and attacks on rural communities. Many groups operate on motorcycles and maintain bases in remote forest areas that are difficult for security forces to access.

Researchers trace the origins of the crisis to a combination of social, economic and environmental pressures. Rapid population growth, competition over land and the effects of climate change have intensified tensions between farming and pastoral communities across northern Nigeria.

Historically, nomadic herders relied on established grazing routes that allowed livestock to move across large areas of the region. However, expanding agricultural activity and population growth have reduced access to these traditional pathways, contributing to disputes over land and resources.

According to Malik Samuel, a senior researcher at the Abuja-based policy organization Good Governance Africa, many members of nomadic Fulani communities have long felt politically and economically marginalized.

He said disputes between farmers and herders often reinforce perceptions that pastoral groups receive less support from authorities during conflicts.Samuel noted that while such grievances may be legitimate, some individuals have exploited them to justify or facilitate criminal activity. Over time, local vigilante structures and self-defense groups evolved in some areas into organized criminal networks involved in kidnapping, illegal mining and other illicit enterprises.

The scale of the problem has grown significantly in recent years. According to data compiled by SBM Intelligence, a Lagos-based risk analysis firm, approximately 15,000 kidnapping incidents were recorded across Nigeria between 2019 and 2025. A large proportion occurred in the northwest, where insecurity has become deeply entrenched.

Separate research by the firm estimated that kidnappers received approximately 2.57 billion naira, equivalent to about £1.4 million, in ransom payments between July 2024 and June 2025. The figures underscore the extent to which kidnapping has become a lucrative criminal enterprise.Katsina State remains among the regions most heavily affected.

Eleven of its 34 local government areas have experienced repeated attacks by bandit groups, resulting in widespread displacement and economic disruption.Many rural residents abandoned villages and farms to seek safety in urban centers, where living expenses were often significantly higher.

Agricultural production suffered as fields were left unattended and livestock movements disrupted. Residents reported that bandits frequently allowed cattle to graze on cultivated farmland, destroying crops and reducing harvests.The psychological impact of the violence has been equally severe. Across affected communities, families developed survival routines designed to minimize risk during nighttime raids.

Many households ate meals early in the evening before leaving their homes to seek refuge in forests or isolated locations.Residents described scenarios in which parents separated while fleeing attacks, with fathers taking some children in one direction and mothers taking others in another attempt to improve the family’s chances of survival.

In the confusion, children were occasionally left behind or became lost while escaping.Accounts from affected communities highlight the human cost of prolonged insecurity. In one incident recalled by residents in Kurfi, a family that remained at home during an attack experienced severe violence. According to local accounts, armed men assaulted the mother while the father hid inside the house fearing for his life.

Such experiences have contributed to growing support for alternative approaches aimed at reducing violence. Community leaders involved in peace efforts argue that their familiarity with local dynamics allows them to communicate with armed groups in ways that external actors often cannot.Supporters of local mediation contend that trusted intermediaries possess knowledge of community relationships, historical grievances and social networks that can facilitate dialogue.

They argue that these connections can help create opportunities for de-escalation in areas where military operations alone have struggled to establish lasting stability.Critics, however, have previously questioned whether negotiations with criminal groups risk legitimizing armed actors or providing temporary rather than permanent solutions. Security analysts note that peace agreements can be fragile and may collapse if underlying economic and social conditions remain unresolved.

Despite those concerns, the relative calm reported in communities such as Kurfi has attracted attention from policymakers and residents seeking practical responses to a crisis that has displaced thousands of people and disrupted economic activity across northern Nigeria.For many residents, the immediate priority is not broader political debate but restoring daily life.

In communities emerging from years of fear, the ability to return to farms, reopen businesses and sleep in their own homes represents a significant measure of progress.Whether locally negotiated peace arrangements can be replicated across other parts of northwestern Nigeria remains uncertain.

However, their emergence reflects a growing recognition that resolving the country’s bandit crisis may require a combination of security operations, community engagement and efforts to address the deeper social and economic factors that have fueled violence for years.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said the mission will document potential breaches of international human rights and humanitarian law and compile findings for future reporting. He said the team would assess conduct by all sides to the conflict.

“It’s the first time that we are sending this assessment mission, and the idea is indeed to look at violations by all parties — violations of international law, violations of international human rights law, and to document this, and eventually to report back to you on our findings,” Türk said.

The announcement came as Israeli strikes continued across southern Lebanon, including an attack on Wednesday that hit the centre of the city of Sidon, according to an AFP correspondent and Lebanese state media.

The conflict in Lebanon escalated after March 2, when Hezbollah, the Iran-backed group, launched rockets toward Israel in solidarity with Iran during heightened regional tensions. Israel responded with a sustained air and ground campaign across southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese authorities and UN accounts cited in the report.

The UN says more than 3,600 people have been killed in Israeli strikes in Lebanon, while over one million people have been displaced since the escalation. Despite a US-announced ceasefire on April 16, Lebanon says hostilities have continued, including nearly 3,500 Israeli strikes since the truce.

The United Nations also warned of worsening humanitarian conditions, estimating that about 1.24 million people in Lebanon could face crisis or emergency levels of food insecurity through August.

Separately on Wednesday, a strike was reported in Sidon, where witnesses said an explosion was followed by a burning vehicle and emergency crews rushing to the scene. The incident underscored the continued volatility in southern Lebanon as international efforts to stabilize the situation remain limited.

The UN assessment mission is expected to focus on documenting incidents across multiple fronts in order to establish an evidentiary record of alleged violations by all parties to the conflict.

Years of drought, recurring floods, armed conflict and shrinking humanitarian assistance have forced millions of Somalis into increasingly precarious conditions, with many displaced families now struggling to survive in overcrowded camps around the capital, Mogadishu.

Among them is 38-year-old Zeynab Ibrahim, a single mother who fled her hometown near Burhakaba in central Somalia after years of failed rains devastated local agriculture and pushed her family into extreme hardship.For three years, Ibrahim watched as drought tightened its grip on her community.

Reservoirs dried up, crops failed and food became increasingly scarce. Hunger and disease spread through the area, claiming numerous lives, including four of her 10 children.“We tried every means to survive – selling dried grass and digging up water from the barren earth.

Unfortunately, there was nothing left, so we had no choice but to escape to save our children,” Ibrahim said while sitting outside a makeshift shelter in an internally displaced persons camp in Mogadishu’s Kahda district.The journey to the capital came only after all other options had been exhausted.

Assisted by a truck driver transporting other displaced families from drought-stricken areas around Burhakaba, she joined the growing number of Somalis seeking refuge in the city.“So hunger is what brought us here,” she said.Ibrahim is one of more than one million displaced people now living in informal settlements across Mogadishu, where many families continue to face severe shortages of food, clean water and basic services despite escaping the immediate effects of drought in rural areas.

Before being displaced, her family relied entirely on farming for survival. Maize, beans, sesame and vegetables grown on their land provided both food and income. As rainfall disappeared, however, agricultural production collapsed.

“Our livelihoods depended on what we could grow on the ground, including maize, beans, sesame and vegetables. But the ground dried because there was no rain,” she said.Her experience reflects a broader pattern unfolding across Somalia, where communities increasingly face overlapping climate and security pressures.

Repeated droughts destroy crops and livestock, while floods that follow periods of extreme dryness often wash away fragile infrastructure and further undermine agricultural recovery.For many households, these environmental shocks occur against a backdrop of persistent conflict and insecurity, limiting opportunities to rebuild livelihoods or safely return home.

The result has been a growing displacement crisis that has reshaped communities across the country. Families forced from rural areas frequently arrive in urban centers with few possessions and limited means of earning an income, increasing their dependence on humanitarian support at a time when aid resources are under strain.

Adan Roble, another displaced Somali, said the combined effects of environmental disasters and insecurity have left many families struggling to meet even their most basic needs.“Imagine losing everything and trying to survive without food and clean water, while fighting continues and drones keep flying overhead,” Roble said.

Roble has experienced multiple climate-related disasters. Years of drought destroyed his crops and rendered his farmland unproductive, undermining the economic foundation on which his family depended.Stories such as those of Ibrahim and Roble illustrate the mounting challenges facing Somalia as climate-related shocks become more frequent and severe.

Rural communities that depend heavily on rain-fed agriculture are often among the most vulnerable, with prolonged dry periods quickly translating into crop failures, livestock losses and widespread food insecurity.For many displaced families, arriving in Mogadishu has provided safety from immediate environmental threats but not from poverty.

Conditions in many informal settlements remain difficult, with limited access to employment opportunities, healthcare, sanitation and reliable food supplies.As climate pressures, conflict and humanitarian constraints converge, displaced households continue to face uncertain futures.

Families that once relied on farming and livestock now find themselves dependent on irregular aid and struggling to rebuild their lives far from the land that once sustained them.

For Ibrahim, the move to Mogadishu was not a choice but a last resort after years of watching her community deteriorate. Although she escaped the drought that devastated her hometown, the daily struggle against hunger and deprivation continues in the camp she now calls home.

The project, located in Visakhapatnam district on India’s eastern coast, forms part of Google’s planned $15 billion investment in India between 2026 and 2030. The facility, comprising three data centers in Tarluvada, Adavivaram and Rambilli villages, is expected to become the company’s largest AI infrastructure hub outside the United States.

While state authorities and industry advocates have promoted the development as a landmark investment in India’s digital economy, concerns have intensified in recent weeks over land acquisition, environmental impacts and the project’s long-term demands on local infrastructure.

According to activists, nearly 200 acres of the approximately 500 acres allocated for the development belong to Dalit families who were granted land rights under a nationwide redistribution program launched during the 1970s.

Critics allege that landowners were pressured into selling their plots at prices significantly below prevailing market rates.E.A.S. Sarma, a former Indian power secretary who has campaigned against the project, said the acquisition process disproportionately affected marginalized landholders.

He argued that compensation paid to local families amounted to a fraction of the land’s market value, effectively transferring economic benefits from poor rural communities to a global technology company.Environmental concerns have emerged as another focal point of opposition. Activists contend that a large portion of the proposed development area falls within or near notified forest land and warn that extensive clearing could increase erosion and sedimentation in nearby reservoirs.Critics also question the project’s future water requirements. Data centers typically consume substantial volumes of water for cooling systems, and residents fear the facility could place additional pressure on resources in a region that has periodically faced water scarcity.Sarma said the development could affect both reservoir capacity and drinking water availability for Visakhapatnam and surrounding communities. He also raised concerns about electricity demand, arguing that large-scale data centers place significant loads on local power infrastructure.Local advocacy groups say uncertainty surrounding the project’s environmental footprint has fueled public anxiety. The Human Rights Forum, a grassroots organization active in the region, said residents have struggled to obtain detailed information regarding water sourcing, electricity supply arrangements and environmental mitigation plans.V.S. Krishna, the organization’s coordinator in Visakhapatnam, said public frustration has grown because key aspects of the project remain unclear. He said local communities were seeking greater transparency regarding the hub’s operational requirements and its potential social and environmental consequences.Residents, including Dalit farmers and urban community groups, have begun organizing meetings and localized protests to demand additional information and safeguards before construction progresses further.The dispute highlights the broader challenge facing India as it seeks to attract large-scale technology investments while balancing environmental concerns, infrastructure constraints and the interests of communities affected by major industrial projects.

The attacks occurred between May 31 and June 3, coinciding with voting in Ethiopia’s parliamentary elections on June 1, which the OLA had previously threatened to disrupt. While authorities confirmed the incidents and blamed the insurgent group, they did not provide an official casualty figure.

Witnesses in Arsi zone told AFP that OLA fighters attacked the village of Eleta Chefa on multiple occasions, killing residents and forcing thousands to flee. Two residents said they personally knew 11 people who were killed during the assaults.

A medical worker who treated victims from several affected communities said he had counted 56 deaths and approximately 50 injuries linked to attacks across multiple localities during the four-day period. The figures could not be independently verified because access to conflict-affected areas remains heavily restricted and official information has been limited.

One survivor said armed militants used rifles to target residents, adding that Orthodox Christians, whom attackers allegedly viewed as sympathetic to the federal government, were among those targeted. He also said Muslims who attempted to protect their neighbors came under attack.

The witness estimated that as many as 3,000 people, including women, children and elderly residents, fled the area following the violence. Another resident said Eleta Chefa was attacked twice, on May 31 and June 1, and reported extensive destruction of homes, crops and livestock.

The medical worker said many displaced residents remained scattered across forests, churches and relatives’ homes, complicating humanitarian assistance efforts. He described treating injuries caused by rifle fire, heavy weapons and sharp-edged weapons.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s office issued a statement on Friday expressing condolences to victims and their families, while reaffirming the government’s position that the attacks were carried out by the OLA.

The OLA rejected accusations of responsibility in a statement posted on X, instead accusing government authorities of fueling communal violence in the region.

The violence highlights the continuing instability in parts of Oromia despite the federal government’s broader efforts to consolidate control following years of conflict across Ethiopia. The OLA, which the government has designated a terrorist organization, has expanded significantly since 2018 and remains one of the country’s most active insurgent movements.

Although the group is not considered capable of threatening the federal government directly, it has repeatedly been linked to deadly attacks and insecurity across Oromia, Ethiopia’s largest regional state.

Official election results have yet to be announced, though Prime Minister Abiy’s Prosperity Party is widely expected to secure another commanding victory, extending its dominance of Ethiopian politics despite ongoing security concerns in several parts of the country.

Most of those displaced are from Malawi and Mozambique. Many said they spent nights hiding in nearby mountains and bushland before seeking shelter in community centers in towns including Gansbaai, Kleinmond and Stanford.

The unrest follows weeks of protests against undocumented migrants that escalated into violence over the weekend. In Mossel Bay, 55 shacks were burned, while authorities reported the deaths of Mozambican nationals amid the tensions.

Local officials said more than 500 people fled their homes in the Gansbaai area alone. Witnesses alleged that groups carrying sticks, whips and other weapons targeted foreign residents regardless of their immigration status.

Mozambique said five of its citizens were killed as a direct result of the attacks and reported that hundreds had already returned home. Ghana and Nigeria have also organized repatriation efforts for affected nationals.
South African authorities have deployed officials to assist displaced migrants with documentation and voluntary return arrangements as fears of further violence persist.

Across the enclave, markets that would normally bustle with Eid shoppers were subdued as residents grappled with soaring inflation, damaged infrastructure and a deepening humanitarian crisis following months of war between Israel and Hamas.

“I go to the market only to look around because I cannot afford to buy anything,” Nadia Abu Shamala, a displaced resident originally from northern Gaza, told AFP from Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza.

“This year, Eid comes with none of the joy we once knew in Gaza because of the effects of the war, the soaring prices, and our inability to provide even the simplest needs for our children,” she said.

Although a US-brokered ceasefire began in October 2025, Israeli air strikes continue intermittently across Gaza. The United Nations estimates that roughly 80% of buildings in the territory sustained damage during the conflict, while the majority of Gaza’s 2.1 million residents remain dependent on humanitarian aid for food and essential supplies.

Aid organizations operating in the enclave say restrictions on the volume of goods entering Gaza through Israeli-controlled crossings have contributed to shortages and sharply inflated prices for food, fuel and livestock.

The economic strain has transformed Eid preparations for many households. The ritual sacrifice of sheep or goats, central to Eid Al-Adha commemorations, has become unattainable for most families due to collapsing livestock supplies and wartime inflation.

“The truce is a big lie, but in any case, we are trying to create joy for the children,” said Abu Abdullah Al-Mosadar, a resident of central Gaza who said he pooled about 13,000 shekels ($4,570) with relatives to purchase a sacrificial sheep.

According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, only about 15,000 sheep remain in Gaza, roughly a quarter of the territory’s pre-war livestock population.

Raafat Asaliya, spokesperson for Gaza’s agriculture ministry, said prices for sacrificial animals had reached unprecedented levels due to shortages, rising feed costs and the destruction of farms.

“A sheep or goat that was sold before the war for around 1,000 shekels is now priced between 11,000 and 15,000 shekels,” Asaliya said.

Residents said even basic meat purchases had become unaffordable.

“Families like ours, who used to make sacrifices every year, are now unable even to buy one kilogram of meat for our children,” said Ahmed Abu Salem, a Gaza City resident.

The hardship has also disrupted longstanding culinary traditions associated with Eid. Families that once baked kaak and maamoul pastries at home now struggle to secure cooking gas and ingredients.

In Khan Younis, some displaced families improvised under makeshift shelters, preparing Eid biscuits in clay ovens beside tents fashioned from reused aid tarpaulins.

“We are still living in tents with no atmosphere of joy, only worries, fear, and exhaustion,” Abu Shamala said. “Without any of the happiness we once knew.”

The Rohang Heritage Center, established in Camp 6 and funded by Bangladeshi authorities in February, was launched as more than 1.3 million Rohingya refugees continue to live across 33 camps in southeastern Bangladesh amid stalled efforts to repatriate them to Myanmar.

The center contains more than 200 items, including historical maps, newspaper clippings, books, photographs and recordings of the Rohingya language.
Mizanur Rahman, Bangladesh’s refugee relief and repatriation commissioner in Cox’s Bazar, said the collection was assembled from materials carried into Bangladesh by Rohingya refugees during successive waves of displacement from Myanmar.

“The items have been collected from old newspaper clippings, books published on Rohingya history, and various historical documents,” Rahman said, adding that the initiative aims to help younger Rohingya reconnect with their ethnic and cultural heritage.

The Rohingya, a predominantly Muslim minority from Myanmar’s Rakhine State, have faced decades of discrimination and statelessness. Hundreds of thousands fled to Bangladesh following a military crackdown in 2017, adding to earlier refugee populations that had crossed the border over previous decades.

Bangladesh and the United Nations have repeatedly sought to facilitate the voluntary return of refugees to Myanmar, but the process has remained largely frozen amid political instability and armed conflict. Conditions deteriorated further after Myanmar’s military seized power in 2021, while fighting between junta forces and the Arakan Army in Rakhine State has intensified since 2024.

Camp administrator Gazi Shariful Hasan, who initiated the heritage project, said a central objective was to collect official Myanmar documents issued before 1989 that identified holders as Rohingya, preserving evidence of state recognition before citizenship rights were effectively withdrawn.

According to Hasan, the center includes civil records, political archives and profiles of Rohingya figures who once participated in Myanmar’s national political life, including former members of parliament.
“Of course, no government would allow foreign nationals to serve in its parliament, which indicates that the Myanmar government previously recognized this ethnic population,” Hasan said.

The exhibits also document the community’s intellectual, religious and cultural history, including biographies of prominent Rohingya Islamic scholars and archival material related to mosques in Rakhine State.

One section features photographs of 25 mosques built in the early 19th century in Rakhine. Organizers said many of the structures have since been destroyed, making historical photographs among the few remaining records of their existence.

The center is operated by Rohingya volunteers and serves both as a cultural archive and an educational resource for younger refugees, many of whom have spent most or all of their lives in camps and have limited access to formal education.

Bangladeshi officials said preserving cultural memory remains important as uncertainty persists over the timing and conditions for any future repatriation process.

The national holiday marks May 25, 2000, when Israeli forces ended a 22-year presence in southern Lebanon following years of conflict. This year’s commemoration came amid continuing hostilities along the Israeli-Lebanese border, prompting Lebanese officials to emphasize the unresolved security situation in the south.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said the anniversary should serve as a moment of national solidarity with families affected by the ongoing conflict, including those who have lost relatives, been wounded, displaced or remain in frontline communities.

In a statement posted on social media, Salam said Lebanon would reserve celebrations until Israeli forces had fully withdrawn from Lebanese territory and displaced residents could safely return to their homes.
President Joseph Aoun described the 2000 withdrawal as the result of sacrifices made by residents of southern Lebanon, calling the anniversary a symbol of national dignity.

He said, however, that the occasion was being observed amid continued military operations in southern villages and what he characterized as ongoing violations of international resolutions, including United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701.

Aoun reiterated Lebanon’s commitment to securing a complete Israeli withdrawal through diplomatic negotiations while emphasizing the role of the Lebanese state and armed forces in safeguarding national sovereignty.

The statements came as tensions remained elevated in southern Lebanon. Residents of 10 villages were ordered to evacuate on Monday as bombardments continued and concerns mounted over a broader escalation along the border region.

According to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, Israeli airstrikes on Sunday killed at least 18 people and wounded 21 others. The ministry said the cumulative death toll linked to the conflict had reached 3,151.

The anniversary has long held symbolic significance in Lebanon’s modern history, marking the end of Israel’s military presence in most of southern Lebanon after more than two decades. This year, however, the observance reflected the extent to which renewed cross-border hostilities have reshaped the country’s political and security landscape.

Lebanese leaders used the occasion to underscore both the legacy of the 2000 withdrawal and the challenges posed by the current conflict, as military operations and civilian displacement continue to affect communities across the south.