Cairo, 2 Sep

A landslide wiped out a village in Sudan's western region of Darfur, killing an estimated 1,000 people in one of the deadliest natural disasters in the African country's recent history, a rebel group controlling the area said late Monday.

The tragedy happened Sunday in the village of Tarasin in Central Darfur's Marrah Mountains after days of heavy rainfall in late August, the Sudan Liberation Movement-Army said in a statement.

“Initial information indicates the death of all village residents, estimated to be more than one thousand people. Only one person survived,” the statement read.

The village was “completely levelled to the ground,” the group said, appealing to the UN and international aid groups for help to recover the bodies.

Footage shared by the Marrah Mountains news outlet showed a flattened area between mountain ranges with a group of people searching the area.

The tragedy came as a devastating civil war engulfed Sudan after tensions between the country's military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces exploded into open fighting in April 2023 in the capital, Khartoum and elsewhere in the country.

Most of the Darfur region, including the Marrah Mountains, has become mostly inaccessible for the UN and aid groups, given crippling restrictions and fighting between Sudan's military and the RSF.

The Sudan Liberation Movement-Army, centred in the Marrah Mountains area, is one of multiple rebel groups active in the Darfur and Kordofan regions. It hasn't taken sides in the war.

The Marrah Mountains are a rugged volcanic chain extending for 160 kilometres southwest of el-Fasher, an epicentre of fighting between the military and the RSF. The area has turned into a hub for displaced families fleeing fighting in and around el-Fasher.

The conflict has killed more than 40,000 people, forced more than 14 million to flee their homes and left some families eating grass in a desperate attempt to survive as famine swept parts of the country.

It has been marked by gross atrocities, including ethnically motivated killing and rape, according to the United Nations and rights groups. The International Criminal Court said it was investigating alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The village of Tarasin is located in the central Marrah Mountains, a volcanic area with a height of more than 3,000 metres at its summit. A world heritage site, the mountain chain is known for its lower temperature and higher rainfall than the surrounding areas, according to UNICEF. It's located more than 900 kilometres west of the capital city of Khartoum.

Sunday's landslide was one of the deadliest natural disasters in Sudan's recent history. Hundreds of people die every year in seasonal rains that run from July to October.