Sudanupdated 56m ago2 min read
Egyptian Army Conducts Airstrike on Sudan-Egypt Border Gold Mine, Killing 13 Miners
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Airstrike hit an artisanal gold mine in the Sudan–Egypt–Libya border triangle. Casualty toll ranges from 13 dead, 28 injured to about 72 killed.
Border airstrike tolls
An airstrike in the border triangle between Sudan, Egypt and Libya killed at least 13 Sudanese miners and injured 28 others, according to ADN Radio and the Sudan Medical Network. The Sudan Doctors Network said the attack targeted artisanal gold miners in the Border Triangle Area and warned that the death toll is preliminary and could rise because some injuries were severe and access to health care is limited.
The Emergency Lawyers said the same Saturday attack killed 72 civilian miners, while the Sudan Doctors Network earlier put the figure at 13 and expected the number of those killed to rise. The Egyptian army did not claim the strikes but said it had conducted a “large-scale operation” against illegal gold mining within its borders, as AFP could not independently confirm the rights group account.
Warnings and survivor accounts
The Sudan Doctors Network said Egyptian authorities repeatedly warned miners to evacuate the area, and it expressed “deep concern” over reports of casualties among mining workers following an aerial bombardment. Abdel-Aziz Yousef, a survivor, told The Associated Press that an unknown aircraft attacked an artisanal gold mine in a mountainous area on Saturday morning, and he said many people were killed or injured.
Sharaf Ali told AFP that there were thousands of people working at the remote site when it was hit, and he said, “After the airstrike people scattered, some people came to Al-Ansary market, others went in the other direction, that’s why no one knows how many exactly were killed.” Emergency Lawyers said the attack carried out by Egyptian military aircraft resulted in the deaths of 72 civilian miners, while the Sudan Doctors Network warned that the death toll could rise due to the severity of injuries and limited access to healthcare facilities.
War economy and next risks
The attack unfolded amid a civil war that has pitted the Sudanese Army against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2023, a conflict that has caused tens of thousands of deaths and millions of people displaced, according to ADN Radio. DW said the strikes targeted artisanal gold miners on a disputed border area south of the remote Halayeb triangle, east of the River Nile, and it described the attack as the second of its kind this year.
DW said the Halayeb triangle is claimed by both Egypt and Sudan and is known for mining and the gold trade, along with other illicit goods and human trafficking, while the Emergency Lawyers said the attack occurred within Sudanese territory. The Sudan Doctors Network warned on Facebook of an expected increase in casualties “due to the severity of some injuries and the difficulties in accessing medical care and essential services in the region,” and the medical group said access to health centers is limited.