Attachments
Nairobi, 24 March – The Sudan INGO Forum is appalled by the latest drone attack on Ed Dain Teaching Hospital in East Darfur, which killed at least 64 people, including 13 children, two female nurses, one male doctor and multiple patients, and injured nearly 90 others.
This attack rendered the hospital completely non-functional, destroying essential departments including the emergency room, pediatric ward, surgery service and a stabilisation centre that was treating children with acute malnutrition and related medical complications. It was the only functioning public medical facility in Ed Dain and its destruction is cutting off lifesaving services for hundreds of thousands of civilians.
This is yet another grave violation of international humanitarian law, within a series of deadly escalations of drone attacks in recent weeks and months. Health facilities and health workers must never be targeted.
Sudan’s health system is already under extraordinary pressure. After nearly three years of war, up to 80% of health facilities in conflict-affected states have shut down, while those still operational face severe shortages of staff, medicine and essential supplies. Repeated attacks on healthcare facilities, over 200 attacks were verified by WHO between April 2023 and December 2025, have killed close to 2,000 people and injured hundreds more, the vast majority of them within the last year only.
At the same time, humanitarian funding is rapidly shrinking. According to interagency analysis, the imminent closure of legacy US-funded programs will result in the shutdown of at least 344 health facilities across 13 states, affecting an estimated 876,247 people every month. In East Darfur specifically, this loss of funding is expected to lead to the suspension of mobile clinics, primary healthcare services, and referral systems that communities depend on.
The destruction of a central facility such as Ed Dain Teaching Hospital, combined with the withdrawal of humanitarian health programming, risks creating a near-total collapse of healthcare access in the region.
The Sudan INGO Forum reiterates its urgent call on all parties to the conflict to:
- Fulfil their obligations under international humanitarian law and immediately cease attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, including hospitals and health facilities.
- Respect and protect medical personnel, facilities, and transport at all times.
- Adopt and enforce a clear no-strike policy on critical civilian infrastructure.
- Ensure safe, rapid, and unhindered humanitarian access to all populations in need.
We further call on the international community to:
- Strongly condemn this attack and all violations of international humanitarian law.
- Take urgent diplomatic action to ensure the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure in Sudan.
- Immediately increase and frontload humanitarian funding to mitigate the severe gaps created by program closures and sustain life-saving services, particularly in conflict-affected states.
The continued targeting of healthcare facilities, combined with the erosion of humanitarian service capacity, represents a devastating convergence that will cost countless lives unless immediate action is taken.