WHO says 114 people were killed, including 63 children, in last week’s drone strikes in Sudan

Sudan’s Kordofan Region Devastated by Drone Strikes: Death Toll Rises to 114

The World Health Organization has confirmed that last week’s drone strikes in Sudan’s Kordofan state killed 114 people, including 63 children. The attacks, which occurred on Thursday, targeted a kindergarten and subsequently struck paramedics and a hospital in the town of Kagoli.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus condemned the violence on social media, stating that the organization “deplores these senseless attacks on civilians and health facilities, and calls again for an end to the violence, and increased access to humanitarian aid, including health.”

According to local monitoring groups, the Sudan Doctor’s Network and Emergency Lawyers, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) were responsible for the three separate drone strikes. The attacks first hit the kindergarten, then targeted first responders as they transported survivors, and finally struck a hospital providing emergency care.

“This represents a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law, including the protection of civilians, especially children, and vital civilian infrastructure,” Emergency Lawyers said in a statement released Saturday.

The horrific incident highlights the intensifying conflict between the RSF and the Sudanese military, which has ravaged the country since 2023. The war has claimed more than 40,000 lives according to WHO figures, though aid organizations suggest the actual death toll is substantially higher. The conflict has also displaced approximately 12 million people, creating one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises.

Fighting has recently shifted to the oil-rich Kordofan region after the RSF captured el-Fasher, the military’s last stronghold in Darfur, western Sudan. The takeover of el-Fasher has been characterized by widespread atrocities, including civilian executions, sexual violence, and other human rights abuses. The International Organization for Migration reports that over 100,000 people have fled the area since the RSF seized control.

United Nations human rights chief Volker Türk issued a warning last week that Kordofan could face similar atrocities to those witnessed in el-Fasher if the conflict continues to escalate.

Adding to the region’s suffering, famine conditions are spreading throughout Kordofan after more than two years of war. Last month, famine was officially declared in Kadugli, South Kordofan’s capital, while reports indicate that Dilling, another town in the region, faces comparable hunger conditions.

The strategic importance of the region was underscored on Monday when the RSF announced it had captured the Heglig area in South Kordofan from Sudanese military forces. Heglig hosts Sudan’s largest oil processing facility and plays a critical role in processing oil from South Sudan, which must transit through Sudan for export.

A military official, speaking anonymously due to lack of authorization, confirmed the RSF takeover of the oil facility, explaining that government forces withdrew to prevent further damage to the critical infrastructure. The capture represents a significant strategic and economic victory for the RSF.

This isn’t the first time oil facilities in the region have been targeted. In November, RSF drone attacks on two key oil installations, including Heglig, forced a temporary emergency shutdown, halting production and export from South Sudan and disrupting regional energy markets.

The continued targeting of civilian infrastructure, combined with attacks on energy facilities, threatens to deepen the humanitarian crisis while further destabilizing Sudan’s economy, which has already been devastated by years of conflict and international isolation.

As violence escalates and humanitarian conditions deteriorate, international organizations continue to call for increased access to affected regions and an end to hostilities that have brought immeasurable suffering to Sudan’s civilian population, particularly in conflict zones like Kordofan.