JUBA: The death toll from a drone strike Monday on a market in an area disputed between Sudan and South Sudan has risen to 153 and is likely even higher, a local official told AFP on Wednesday.
Authorities in Abyei district said the strike on the Amiet market involved the use of multiple munitions and was carried out by the Sudanese army.
"The number of casualties is 153 and it may increase any time from now because some victims burned to ashes and the rescuers are doing their best to gather all the bodies in Amiet Market," said Yohana Akol, interim information minister for Abyei Special Administrative Area.
He said the victims included Sudanese, South Sudanese, Ethiopians and Somalis, and a further 19 have been hospitalised, with more on the way.
Images shared with AFP showed bombed-out buildings and vehicles.
"A swarm of drones was hovering over the Amiet Market and they bombed part of the market and surroundings and there were so many casualties," a witness told AFP by phone, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons.
"Some of business places are still on fire and there were people burned beyond the recognition inside," the witness added.
Another witness said fuel depots were severely damaged.
On Sunday and Monday, strikes across Sudan killed more than 100 people. The country is in the grips of a brutal war between the regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that began in April 2023.
Abyei district is claimed by both Sudan and South Sudan, which split from its northern neighbour in 2011 following decades of conflict.
Parts of the district are controlled by a faction of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), a splinter from the organisation that fought for Juba's independence.
Juba's foreign ministry said it had summoned the Sudanese ambassador over the attack, which it condemned "in the strongest terms possible".
The United Nations also condemned the attacks, saying escalating drone strikes were "part of a deeply concerning pattern".
str-er/kjm