Escalating Drone Attacks on Healthcare Facilities and Civilians in Sudan

Moatinoon
As the use of drones intensifies in Sudan’s ongoing conflict, civilians are facing growing risks that directly affect their daily lives. These aerial weapons have increasingly been used to target residential areas and critical infrastructure—particularly healthcare facilities—marking a dangerous escalation in the war’s humanitarian impact.

During March, field reports and humanitarian sources documented dozens of civilian casualties resulting from drone strikes. At least 60 people were killed in an attack on Al-Daein Teaching Hospital in East Darfur, while 7 others were killed in a strike on Al-Jabalain Hospital in White Nile State. Additional casualties were reported in separate drone attacks targeting civilian vehicles, markets، and homes in Blue Nile and South Kordofan, bringing the overall toll to tens of civilian deaths and injuries within a single month.

According to the Emergency Lawyers group, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) shelled Al-Jabalain Hospital, killing and injuring dozens of civilians, including two doctors, in what it described as a blatant violation of international humanitarian law. The attack also hit other medical facilities, including the medical supplies headquarters in Rabak, further worsening the already fragile health situation and threatening life-saving services.

The group noted that this attack reflects a broader pattern of drone strikes carried out by both parties to the conflict since March, targeting healthcare facilities across South Kordofan, Blue Nile, and Darfur. These attacks have contributed directly to forced displacement and worsening waves of civilian displacement، raising fears of a widespread collapse of health services in multiple regions.

Sudan Doctors Network reported that 7 people, including 2 medical staff, were killed and 11 others injured in the Al-Jabalain hospital attack. The victims included Dr. Hamed Suleiman and Dr. Qisma Mohamed Fadlallah, who were killed while performing their humanitarian duties, along with the hospital’s administrative director.

The network condemned what it described as systematic targeting of healthcare facilities and personnel, calling it a grave violation of international law and a dangerous escalation threatening the country’s already collapsing health system. It held RSF leadership fully responsible and urged the international community to act to protect medical infrastructure and staff.

Meanwhile, a civil society initiative in Blue Nile condemned a drone strike on a civilian vehicle in the Mangaza area of Bao locality, which resulted in deaths and injuries. It also denounced attacks on homes, markets, and hospitals in Yabous and Balila areas in Al-Kurmuk locality, reportedly carried out by drones affiliated with the Sudanese army.

The initiative stressed that such acts may amount to crimes against humanity and war crimes, calling on all parties to the conflict to uphold their moral and legal responsibilities toward civilians, ensure safe corridors, and work toward an immediate ceasefire or comprehensive humanitarian truce.

Human rights and medical groups warn that the continued use of drones against civilian objects is deepening Sudan’s humanitarian crisis and severely undermining access to essential services—especially healthcare—at a time when millions are already facing dire conditions.