A strike on a healthcare facility in Sudan killed 64 people and wounded 89, the World Health Organization said on Saturday.
The UN’s humanitarian office in Sudan said it was “appalled by the attack on a hospital in East Darfur… reportedly killing dozens, including children, and injuring more.” Sudanese rights group the Emergency Lawyers, which documents atrocities in the conflict between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), said an army drone strike hit El-Daein teaching hospital.
El-Daein is the RSF-controlled capital of East Darfur. The RSF dominates much of western Darfur while the army holds sway in the east, centre and north. The army has repeatedly struck El-Daein as it seeks to push the RSF back toward its Darfur strongholds and away from Sudan’s central corridor; earlier this month an attack on the city market ignited oil barrels that burned for hours.
The WHO’s attack surveillance system marked Friday’s incident as “confirmed” but did not provide an exact location. The WHO record described “violence with heavy weapons” affecting a secondary health-care facility, including medical staff, patients, supplies and storage. The WHO verifies and records attacks on health care but does not assign blame, since it is not an investigative agency.
Drone strikes have become a recurring feature of Sudan’s war, often causing mass casualties, especially in southern Kordofan. UN human rights chief Volker Türk said this month he was “appalled” after reports that more than 200 civilians were killed by drone attacks over eight days, warning that warring parties are using increasingly powerful drones to deploy explosive weapons with wide-area effects in populated areas.
Hospitals have frequently been targeted during the conflict. By December, the UN reported more than 1,800 people had been killed in attacks on health facilities since the fighting began, including 173 health workers. This year, 12 attacks on health care in Sudan have been recorded, resulting in 178 deaths and 237 injuries.
The wider war has killed tens of thousands, displaced more than 11 million people and driven what the UN calls the world’s largest displacement and hunger crises, with over 33 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.