Armed youth kill 178 in horror terror ‘shock’ assault as mass graves uncovered
Chaos and carnage erupted before dawn as a sleepy community was rocked by a shocking attack, leaving hundreds dead and sparking fears that even worse may be yet to come
Members of the South Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO) gather at a security post outside local government offices in the strategic opposition-controlled town of Akobo, Jonglei State, on February 12, 2026.(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
A brutal attack by armed men has left at least 178 people dead, including dozens of children and elderly. Survivors have described the scenes of chaos as homes and markets were set ablaze.
Moreover, medical teams are struggling to cope with the flood of casualties. The assault, which erupted before dawn and lasted for hours, has sparked fears of renewed widespread violence in a country already scarred by years of conflict, with the UN warning that the situation could spiral further out of control.
The gang behind the massacre stormed the affected village before dawn, catching locals as they slept. The attack, which happened in Abiemnom county, in the Ruweng Administrative Area in the north of South Sudan saw homes and markets set alight and lasted for hours.
James Monyluak Mijok, a local official, told the BBC: “The dead include 90 children, women and elderly people, as well as 79 members of regional forces, including police.” Many victims have been buried in a mass grave, with 73 more rushed to hospital, some taken to a neighbouring area for treatment.
The attackers were described as “dozens of armed youth” who allegedly came from a nearby region and were linked to the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in Opposition (SPLA-IO). But the SPLA-IO has denied any involvement, accusing authorities of “politicising the violence”.
Medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said the situation was “extremely challenging”, the BBC reported. Nurse supervisor Abraham Deng Lual Wek said: “It was really difficult to manage the mass casualty situation, but many MSF and Ministry of Health staff came on their day off and from other facilities to support.”
He added: “Our triage area, emergency room and wards were full of patients, so we expanded capacity by using tents and a meeting space, which also filled quickly.”
The United Nations has warned the country could be slipping back into all-out civil war, saying around 1,000 terrified civilians have fled to a UN base for safety.
This comes after Sudan’s brutal civil war has seen a disturbing rise in attacks on hospitals, with the British Hospital in El-Obeid bombed at dawn by the Rapid Support Forces, leaving multiple doctors and nurses fighting for their lives and prompting urgent calls for international action.
At dawn on March 2, the British Hospital in El-Obeid, Sudan, was struck in an aerial attack by the Rapid Support Forces, leaving 12 people severely injured, including five medical staff, the Daily Star previously reported.
Some of the wounded are in critical condition, and the Sudan Doctors Network has condemned the assault as a blatant violation of international humanitarian law. The attack has forced the suspension of vital medical services for over a million displaced people in the city.
This incident marks a dangerous escalation in Sudan’s ongoing civil war, which has already created the world’s largest humanitarian and displacement crisis.
For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters .
