Drone strike by rebels in southern Sudan injures 6, destroys medical supplies

At least six people were injured and medical warehouses were destroyed in a drone attack launched by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and their ally the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) on the city of Dilling in Sudan’s South Kordofan state, a local medical group said Thursday.

The Sudan Doctors Network said in a statement that the attack was carried out Wednesday evening.

It added that it caused "the complete destruction of the city's medical supply warehouses.”

"The bombing resulted in significant losses of medicines and medical supplies intended for the treatment of civilians and patients in a deliberate violation of the city's health and service institutions," the network said.

The medical group said that targeting health facilities and medical supply depots "constitutes a fully-fledged crime and a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law, which prohibits targeting civilian service institutions."

It pointed out that the deliberate destruction of medical supplies exacerbates the already dire humanitarian and health conditions faced by residents of Dilling and surrounding areas, depriving thousands of patients of their fundamental right to treatment and health care.

It held the RSF and SPLM-N "fully responsible for these repeated violations against civilians and health care infrastructure."

The network called on the international community, UN agencies and human rights organizations to "take immediate action to condemn these crimes, protect health facilities and medical personnel, and launch an independent investigation to hold all those involved in targeting civilian institutions and humanitarian services accountable."

There was no immediate comment from the RSF or SPLM-N.

South Kordofan along with North and West Kordofan has witnessed clashes since Oct. 25 between the Sudanese army, the RSF and SPLM-N, resulting in the displacement of tens of thousands of people.

Sudan has faced one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises since war erupted in April 2023 between the army and the RSF over a dispute about integrating the paramilitary force into the military. The conflict has triggered famine, killed tens of thousands and displaced millions.

*Writing by Rasa Evrensel in Istanbul