Sudan says RSF drone strike kills 79 civilians, including 43 children

At least 79 civilians, including 43 children, were killed and 38 others injured in a drone strike by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in South Kordofan on Friday, Sudanese authorities said.

In a statement, the South Kordofan state government said four women were among the victims in the attack that targeted the city of Kalogi in western Sudan.

It said the drone fired four missiles into a kindergarten, a hospital and densely populated areas in the city, decrying the attack as a “heinous crime” by the RSF-allied Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N).

The state government called on the international community and human rights groups to take a firm stance to end these violations, designate the RSF as a “terrorist organization,” and hold its allies accountable for what it described as “inhumane crimes.”

A displaced woman in Darfur, Sudan. PHOTO: REUTERS

There was no comment from the rebel group on the attack.

The three Kordofan states – North, West, and South – have seen weeks of fierce fighting between the army and the RSF, prompting tens of thousands of people to flee.

Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five states of the Darfur region in the west, except for some northern parts of North Darfur that remain under army control. The army, in turn, holds most areas of the remaining 13 states in the south, north, east, and center, including the capital, Khartoum.

The conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has killed at least 40,000 people and displaced 12 million, according to the World Health Organization.