‘Half of my friends were killed’ in el-Obeid school shelling

It was an ordinary day for 18-year-old twin brothers Makarem and Ikram when their school came under fire.

Makarem was in English literature class and Ikram was in science class when they heard “strange noises” coming from outside the school in Sudan.

Then the bombardment started.

Makarem said his shoulder was “bowed” when he was shot. Classmates screamed and fell to the ground to avoid cannon fire and find cover.

“We took cover next to the wall and the girl in front of me put her hand on my shoulder and said, ‘Your shoulder is bleeding’.”

During the chaos, two sisters in different classes tried to reach each other but failed. Later, Ikram called his sister, not knowing that she had been hospitalized.

Like other injured people, Makarem was taken to the hospital by local residents who transported the injured in cars and animal carts, as there was no ambulance service in El-Obeid, the city where they lived.

Eventually, his teachers and classmates had to persuade Ikram to stop looking for him and go home.

Only when Makarem returned home from the hospital that day did his family learn that he was still alive.

“I waited for him in front of the front door and we all cried when we saw him coming,” said Ikram, who was in an area of ​​the school that was not hit and was therefore unharmed.

In August 2024, Makarem and Ikram’s English teacher and 13 classmates were killed and dozens were injured in the bombardment of the Abu Sitta girls’ school in al-Obeid in North Kordofan province. The school normally has around 300 students.

Regional authorities blame the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the paramilitary group fighting the Sudanese army, for firing the artillery shells.

RSF had no comment on the incident and did not respond to the BBC’s request for comment. It is not yet known whether the bombing of the school was intentional or not.

Makarem said that half of his friends at school died and the other half were injured.

The woman, who was injured in her head as well as her shoulder, was discharged from the hospital after receiving basic treatment.

But a few days later, after severe headaches appeared, a CT scan was performed and a small piece of shrapnel was found in his head.

“It hurt so much and I had to take a lot of painkillers,” he says.

The civil war in Sudan began in April 2023 and resulted in the deaths of more than 150,000 people and the displacement of millions from their homes.

The United Nations says the country is now enduring the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

Sudan’s oil-rich Kordofan region, divided into North, South and West Kordofan states, has become a key frontline in the war due to its strategic importance, located between RSF-controlled areas in the west and eastern areas for which the army is mostly responsible.

Analysts say whoever controls the region effectively controls the country’s oil supply, as well as much of the country.

According to the UN, of the 17 million school-age children remaining in Sudan, an estimated 13 million are out of school.

RSF-controlled North Darfur has been the worst-hit state, with only 3% of schools open, according to the charity Save the Children.

Abu Sitta school was closed for three months while it was being renovated following the attack.

Makarem and Ikram said they initially could not imagine returning to the place where their friends and teachers were killed.

“But when I saw my friends coming back and telling me everything was fine, I decided to go back,” says Ikram.

Still, returning to school brought back painful memories.

“On the way to class, I would close my eyes so as not to look at the area where the bombardment took place,” says Ikram.

School principal Iman Ahmed says some students were given psychological support at school when they returned.

A bed and a nurse were also available at the school so that injured students could take the exam comfortably.

Although Al-Obeid still faces constant drone attacks, students at the school were playing and laughing in the courtyard when the BBC visited in December.

The school’s principal describes the girls’ determination to continue their education despite what happened to them “as a kind of defiance and loyalty to those who were lost.”

But the situation for children trying to learn in Al-Obeid remains challenging.

The city remained under RSF siege for more than a year and a half until the Sudanese army regained control in February 2025.

Although relative calm prevails now, dozens of schools have been turned into shelters for people fleeing war.

Al-Obeid hosts nearly one million displaced people in various shelters, according to the province’s humanitarian official.

Ibtisam Ali, a converted middle school student, says he cannot leave his classroom until the school day is over because the schoolyard is full of displaced people.

“Even going to the toilet became a problem for us,” he says.

Walid Mohamed Al-Hassan, education minister of North Kordofan province, said the presence of displaced families in schools caused problems, including sanitation problems, but these were “war conditions and the cost of war”.

Makarem and Ikram, who are now 19 years old, are hopeful for their future despite the war and what happened.

He completed his training in catering at school and is currently studying English at the university in El-Obeid.

He was inspired by English teacher Fathiya Khalil Ibrahiem, who was killed in the attack.

He says his friends’ deaths made him even more determined to complete his education.

“I kept reminding myself that we had to have the same passion to achieve what they couldn’t.”

Makarem, on the other hand, wants to be a doctor like those who treated him after he was injured.

He passed his secondary school exams but did not get the required scores to study medicine at university.

Makarem says that the piece of shrapnel that lodged in his head and could not be removed by surgery made it difficult for him to study at first.

“I could only work for an hour and then rest for another hour. It was very difficult.”

Sudanese neurologist Dr. Tarek Zobier said the medical consequences of shrapnel to the head vary from case to case.

Some people experience no symptoms and can survive without medical intervention.

However, if more serious symptoms such as spasms are experienced, surgery may be required.

Makarem’s pain is no longer constant, but gets worse when it is cold in winter. He relies on painkillers when necessary.

He decided to repeat the school year so he could retake his exams.

“I believe I can achieve the score I target.

“I’m hopeful for the future,” he says.

Additional reporting by Salma Khattab

The BBC World Service is launching a new season of the Arabic edition of its award-winning education programme, Dars – or Lesson, to support children whose access to education is denied or restricted in Sudan and other Arabic-speaking countries.

The first episode will air on BBC News Arabic TV on Saturday, January 24. New episodes air weekly on Saturdays at 09:30 GMT (11:30 EET), with repeats on Sundays at 05:30 GMT (07:30 EET) throughout the week.

The program is also available on digital platforms including BBC News Arabic YouTube.