The Sudan Liberation Movement/Army on Tuesday appealed to foreign entities to help recover bodies and rescue residents of a village swept by flooding, after announcing that at least 1,000 people were killed in a massive landslide.
The armed group, which controls part of Sudan’s Darfur region in the west, said only one person survived the landslide that wiped out the entire village of Tarsin in the Jebel Marra area.
The group, which has long controlled part of Jebel Marra, urged the United Nations and international relief agencies to help recover the bodies of the victims.
“The collapsed area of Tarsin, one of the most famous citrus-producing areas of Jebel Marra, was completely leveled,” the movement said in a statement. “We appeal to the United Nations, regional and international organizations, and the living human conscience to help us exhume the bodies buried under the soil. The number is estimated at more than 1,000 men, women, and children.”
Movement leader Abdel Wahid Mohamed al-Nur, in a separate appeal, warned that “similar disasters are expected in other areas and neighboring villages, which requires a plan to evacuate citizens and provide necessary shelter.”
“I call on the United Nations, its agencies, and all regional and international organizations to act urgently and help save the lives of thousands of citizens threatened by landslides,” he added.
Darfur regional governor Minni Arko Minnawi said in a statement that the disaster in Tarsin was “a humanitarian tragedy that transcends the borders of the region, as we have lost a significant number of our people in this devastating natural disaster.”
He said “the town was struck by massive landslides, leaving residents in chaos and without basic shelter or possessions.”
Minnawi urged all local and international humanitarian bodies to “quickly coordinate to provide food, safe drinking water, medical care for those affected, and emergency shelter for the survivors.”
Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council announced it was mobilizing all available resources to support those affected in Tarsin.
Prime Minister Kamal Idris offered his condolences to the victims of the disaster, stressing the government’s commitment to follow up and provide as much support and relief as possible to assist the affected.
Idris urged “all humanitarian organizations to stand with Sudan and provide urgent assistance,” according to the official Sudan News Agency (SUNA).
International Condolences
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt on Tuesday expressed condolences to Sudan’s government and people after more than 1,000 were killed in the landslide caused by heavy rains in Central Darfur state, western Sudan.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry conveyed the kingdom’s “deep condolences and sincere sympathy to the government and people of the brotherly Republic of Sudan over the victims of the landslide in Jebel Marra.”
The statement reaffirmed Saudi Arabia’s “solidarity with Sudan and its people, extending heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased and wishes for a speedy recovery to the injured.”
Qatar
Qatari Minister of State for International Cooperation Mariam al-Misned held a phone call with al-Sadiq Ismail Mahmoud, adviser to Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council for humanitarian organizations and head of the National Supreme Committee for Humanitarian Emergencies.
Al-Misned offered “sincere condolences and sympathy to the victims of the landslide, praying for mercy to the deceased and a swift recovery to the injured,” according to the Qatar News Agency (QNA).
She reaffirmed Qatar’s readiness to “provide full support to the brotherly people of Sudan in facing the impact of this disaster.”
The two also discussed “bilateral cooperation and ways to strengthen it, particularly in humanitarian work.” Mahmoud expressed “Sudan’s gratitude to Qatar for its continued support to the Sudanese people in various fields,” according to the statement.
Egypt
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry, in solidarity with Sudan, said: “The Arab Republic of Egypt expresses its deepest condolences and sympathy to the government and leadership of Sudan and to its brotherly people over the victims of the devastating landslides.”
“Egypt affirms its full solidarity with Sudan’s government, leadership, and people in this painful ordeal, extending condolences to the families of the victims,” the ministry added.
Earlier Tuesday, the civilian wing of the Sudan Liberation Movement announced that more than 1,000 people had been killed in Tarsin in Jebel Marra, Central Darfur, due to landslides triggered by torrential rains.
The Tarsin disaster comes as Sudanese people continue suffering from the consequences of the war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, which has raged since mid-April 2023.
The war has killed more than 20,000 people and displaced about 15 million, according to the United Nations and local authorities. A recent study by U.S. universities estimated the death toll at about 130,000.
