The World Health Organization has issued a grave condemnation following a series of devastating assaults on medical facilities in Sudan’s conflict-ravaged South Kordofan region. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus confirmed Sunday that three separate attacks on health centers within a single week have resulted in over 30 fatalities, marking a severe escalation in the targeting of medical infrastructure.
The violence began on February 3rd when a primary health center was assaulted, claiming eight lives including five children and three women, while leaving eleven others injured. Mere hours later, a hospital attack resulted in one additional fatality. The most devastating strike occurred on February 5th when another hospital was targeted, killing 22 individuals—including four healthcare workers—and wounding eight more.
This alarming pattern of violence against medical facilities unfolds against the backdrop of Sudan’s devastating civil conflict, which has pitted the national army against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces since April 2023. The ongoing warfare has already claimed tens of thousands of lives, displaced millions, and created one of the world’s most severe humanitarian catastrophes.
The central Kordofan region, now the epicenter of hostilities, faces a collapsed healthcare system further crippled by these systematic attacks. Tedros emphasized that these assaults are particularly devastating for a population already suffering from acute malnutrition and limited access to medical care.
The WHO chief issued an urgent global appeal, stating: ‘The whole world should get behind Sudan’s peace initiative to end violence, protect the people and rebuild the health system.’ He underscored that ‘the best medicine is peace’ in a region where healthcare infrastructure has become both a casualty and a frontline in the ongoing conflict.