Situation Report:

Situation in Sudan (per 12 March)

• The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) carried out a drone attack on a secondary school and a healthcare centre in Shukeiri, White Nile province, killing at least 17 people and wounding at least 10 others. Most of the victims were schoolgirls. 
• At least 52 civilians, including children, have been killed in a drone attack on a convoy carrying displaced people from the As Sunaytah area to El Fula in West Kordofan on Tuesday. The drone was allegedly launched by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).
• Another drone strike on the South Darfur state capital Nyala killed 11 people and wounded 20, according to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).
• The Argeen border crossing between Sudan and Egypt experienced a week-long bus congestion which has been attributed to smuggling of commercial goods, according to Sudan’s Customs Authority. 
• Sudan’s energy ministry denied claims of fuel supply crisis in Sudan’s energy market and urged citizens to stop panic-buying gasoline. 

Situation in South Sudan (per 12 March)

• The South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF) claimed to have captured the strategic town of Akobo from the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO) on Wednesday. 
• 200,000 civilians are estimated to have fled to nearby Tiergol town on the Ethiopian border, due to the fighting between the SSPDF and the SPLA-IO in Akobo. 
• South Sudan risks postponing its planned December 2026 general elections for a fifth time due to a lack of political will and insufficient funding, said the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), adding that the leaders are instead prioritizing spending on military operations.
• UN human rights chief Volker Türk called for an immediate ceasefire in South Sudan on Tuesday, stating that some of the acts committed during the conflict may amount to war crimes. 

Situation in Ethiopia (per 12 March)

• At least 30 people have been killed in floods and landslides triggered by heavy rainfall in the Gamo Zone of southern Ethiopia, according to local authorities.
• The Ethiopian Catholic Bishops’ Conference (CBCE) issued a statement condemning the recent killings in the Arsi Zone of Oromia as well as other acts of violence and atrocities committed against civilians in various parts of the country. 
• Hundreds of people continue to flee Tigray every day amid a growing fear of renewed fighting in the region.
• Ongoing fraud schemes in central and northwestern Ethiopia are reportedly exploiting food aid beneficiaries of the USAID programmes through corruption in selection processes, vendor exploitation, and coercion by local officials and armed groups, warned the USAID Office of Inspector General.
• The pollution caused by the Lega Dembi gold mine, Oromia region, has been inflicting serious health problems for the local population for years, reports Human Rights Watch. The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child urged the Ethiopian government to resolve the issue.

International and regional situation (per 12 March)

• The US Department of State designated the Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood organisation as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist because of its use of “unrestrained violence against civilians to undermine efforts to resolve the conflict in Sudan and advance its violent Islamist ideology”.
• A project for strengthening border and migration governance in Ethiopia through modernized border controls, enhanced technology systems, and improved public health preparedness at points of entry was launched by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), in partnership with Ethiopia and the Netherlands.
• Djibouti, Ethiopia and Somalia held consultations on Wednesday to discuss peace and security in the region, the state of development of its economic integration, and shared interests for all three countries.
• Libya’s Illegal Immigration Agency says it seized three 4×4 vehicles loaded with weapons during a security operation in the desert border area shared with Egypt and Sudan, as part of ongoing efforts to combat smuggling and organized crime.
• Tunisia and Libya are seeking to strengthen development in their shared border regions through new cooperation agreements which they say are aimed at improving security, creating formal economic opportunities and working together to tackle cross-border crimes such as smuggling.

Refugee and Migration Situation (per 12 March)

• Representatives from Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Denmark and Greece met on 5 March in Brussels to discuss implementation of building deportation centres outside Europe as hubs for rejected asylum seekers as they wait to be returned to their countries of origin.
• The European Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties voted on new deportation rules for its Return Regulation passing a rule that scales up deportations. The regulation would make it possible for migrant families and minors to end up jailed for two years.
• The new regulation still needs to be voted on in the plenary of the European Parliament. The civil society organisations urge MEPs to reject the bill in the plenary vote in fear of further crackdowns on refugees, migrants and asylum seekers in Europe. 
• Over 70% of the refugees arriving in Sudan come from South Sudan, mostly entering the country via White Nile state, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

Links of interest

At least 17 killed after drone strikes school in Sudan

Sudan war: 52 killed in West Kordofan drone convoy carnage

Dozens of civilians killed in drone strikes in southern Sudan

Sudan blames bus congestion at Egypt border on commercial smuggling

Sudan denies fuel shortage as supply fears trigger queues

SSPDF says it captured strategic Akobo town

South Sudan: Hundreds of thousands flee clashes in Akobo

South Sudan at risk of another election delay, observers warn

MTN South Sudan Advances Digital Education Through Strategic Partnership

The bishops in the country: “We urge all Ethiopians to resist hatred and reject any attempts to create division in our society”

Fears of renewed conflict drives rising numbers of Tigrayans to flee Ethiopia

Floods and landslides kill 30 in southern Ethiopia 

Terrorist Designation of the Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood

UN rights chief urges immediate ceasefire in South Sudan as fears of war crimes grow

USAID Inspector General warns of ‘ongoing fraud schemes’ targeting food aid beneficiaries in central, northwestern Ethiopia

UN Urges Ethiopia to Tackle Pollution at Gold Mine

IOM, Government of Ethiopia, the Netherlands Partner to Modernize Border Management Systems and Infrastructure, and Strengthen Public Health Preparedness

Djibouti, Ethiopia and Somalia hold a tripartite consultation

Seizure of weapons and ammunition on the shared Libyan borders with Egypt and Sudan

Tunisia looks to replicate Algeria model in border cooperation with Libya

Five EU countries team up to build return hubs outside Europe

EU moves to allow two years’ jail for families facing deportation

Overview of Refugees and Asylum-seekers in Sudan

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