In a tragic turn of events, the Sudan Doctors Network has reported that 27 civilians, including four children, were killed by the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) rebels in South Kordofan. The killings occurred in Qardud and Abu Hamama, inhabited by the Otoro tribe, on Tuesday. These attacks have resulted in a significant displacement of citizens towards Abu Hitan area and Kadugli. Targeting unarmed civilians based on ethnic grounds is considered a clear violation of international humanitarian law. The ongoing conflict in South Kordofan risks escalating into an ethnic conflict due to these violations. This recent violence follows intense fighting between forces linked to SPLM-N and the Otoro tribe, a minority group in the Nuba Mountains of South Kordofan. The ethnic standoff, initially instigated by land disputes, adds another layer to Sudan's ongoing civil war, which broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The Sudan Doctors Network appeals to the international community for pressure on SPLM-N leadership to cease attacks on civilians, as women were also among those wounded. The SPLM-N is a breakaway faction of the SPLM, the ruling party of neighboring South Sudan. Its leader, Abdel Aziz al-Hilu, has allied his fighters with the RSF and joined ranks with the RSF-led parallel government in Sudan. The civil war in Sudan has claimed at least 59,000 lives and displaced some 14 million people, with two-thirds of the country's population requiring humanitarian assistance according to the World Health Organization.