The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) opened fire on Tuesday and Wednesday at the Saudi hospital and a nearby mosque where displaced families had sought refuge.
The Saudi hospital is the city’s last functioning medical facility, serving thousands of war-affected people.
“These attacks are unacceptable. Civilians must never be targeted,” OCHA said in a statement condemning the assault. “We once again echo the UN Secretary-General’s call for an immediate cessation of hostilities.”
The UN Population Fund confirmed that one of the strikes hit the hospital’s maternity ward, killing 12 people and injuring many others, including patients and health workers. It was the third attack on the hospital in a single week.
“People in El Fasher are trapped, terrified and cut off from aid, and their last lifeline for medical care is under threat,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said from New York. “The targeting of hospitals is to be condemned and never acceptable.”
El Fasher has been under siege for more than a year as the RSF, a paramilitary group formerly known as the Janjaweed, intensifies its bid to capture the city, the last government-held area in Darfur. The group has reportedly escalated artillery shelling and drone attacks in recent months, deepening the humanitarian crisis in the region.
Sudan’s civil war, now in its third year, has created one of the world’s worst humanitarian emergencies. More than 30 million people require assistance, while around 12 million have been displaced, including over four million who have fled to neighbouring countries such as Chad and the Central African Republic.
Humanitarian agencies report that civilians are fleeing El Fasher and nearby Zamzam camp, whose population has dropped by 70% in the past six months. Thousands of families have relocated to nearby towns like Tawila, now hosting some 600 000 displaced people.
The UN reiterated its call for safe humanitarian access, protection of civilians, and an immediate humanitarian pause in and around El Fasher to allow lifesaving aid to reach those in need.
–UN/ChannelAfrica–
