A strike on a healthcare facility in Sudan killed 64 people and wounded 89 more, the World Health Organization reported on Saturday.
The UN’s humanitarian office in Sudan said it was “appalled by the attack on a hospital in East Darfur yesterday, reportedly killing dozens, including children, and injuring more”.
Sudanese rights group the Emergency Lawyers, which documents atrocities in the war between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), reported an army drone strike hit the El-Daein teaching hospital.
The RSF controls much of western Darfur, while the army holds sway over Sudan’s east, centre and north.
The WHO’s surveillance system for attacks marked Friday’s incident as “confirmed” but did not specify an exact location. The record said the attack involved “violence with heavy weapons” and affected a secondary health-care facility, medical staff, patients, supplies and storage.
While the WHO counts and verifies attacks on health care, it does not assign blame, as it is not an investigative body.
El-Daein, the RSF-controlled capital of East Darfur, has been repeatedly attacked by the army, which has been trying to push the paramilitary back toward its Darfur strongholds and away from Sudan’s central corridor. Earlier this month an army strike on the city’s market set fire to oil barrels that burned for hours.
Near-daily drone strikes are now a hallmark of Sudan’s brutal war, killing dozens at a time, mostly in the southern Kordofan region. The UN human rights chief, Volker Türk, said he was “appalled” after more than 200 civilians were reported killed by drone attacks within an eight-day period. “Parties to the conflict in Sudan continue to use increasingly powerful drones to deploy explosive weapons with wide-area impacts in populated areas,” he said.
Hospitals have been a regular target throughout the war. By December, more than 1,800 people had been killed in attacks on health facilities since the conflict began, including 173 health workers, the UN reported. This year, 12 attacks on health care in Sudan have been recorded, causing 178 deaths and 237 injuries.
Across the country, the war has killed tens of thousands and driven more than 11 million people from their homes. It has fuelled what the UN describes as the world’s largest displacement and hunger crises, with more than 33 million people in need of humanitarian aid.
