The collapse occurred in "five abandoned shafts" of the Umm Fakroun mine in  South Kordofan state last Friday, the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company (SMRC) said in a statement. Since conflict erupted between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in April 2023, both sides' war efforts have been largely funded by Sudan's gold industry, in addition to foreign backers. "The shafts had been abandoned and shut down, but some miners snuck in and were working illegally," the statement said. The war has devastated Sudan's already fragile economy and left much of the country out of work, yet SMRC announced a "five-year high" in production of 70 tonnes in 2025. But officials lament that much of the gold is smuggled across borders including through Chad, South Sudan and Egypt before reaching the United Arab Emirates, the world's second-largest gold exporter. Of last year's 70 tonnes, only "20 tonnes have been exported through official channels", army-aligned Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim told AFP this month. (Bssnews)