More than 40 people, including children and healthcare workers, lost their lives over the weekend in an attack on a hospital in Sudan, the head of the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Tuesday.
The incident occurred on Saturday at Al Mujlad Hospital in West Kordofan, near a contested frontline between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The two sides have been locked in a violent conflict since April 2023.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus condemned the strike, urging an immediate end to attacks on medical facilities. He stopped short of attributing blame to either party involved in the fighting.
In a separate update, WHO’s office in Sudan confirmed that six children and five medical personnel were among the casualties. The organisation also reported significant structural damage to the hospital.
Meanwhile, Emergency Lawyers, a local human rights group, alleged that the hospital was targeted by a drone strike carried out by the Sudanese army. However, in a statement issued on Sunday, the group put the confirmed death toll at nine—far lower than the WHO’s estimate.
