Sudanese Conflict Intensifies, Targeting Hospitals and Medical Workers By The Media Line Staff Armed clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continue to escalate in El Fasher, western Sudan, with severe consequences for health personnel and facilities. Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF) has raised alarms about […]
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The Media Line: Sudanese Conflict Intensifies, Targeting Hospitals and Medical Workers
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Sudanese Conflict Intensifies, Targeting Hospitals and Medical Workers
By The Media Line Staff
Armed clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continue to escalate in El Fasher, western Sudan, with severe consequences for health personnel and facilities. Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF) has raised alarms about the ongoing attacks on hospitals and the lack of external aid due to the intense violence.
Michel-Olivier Lacharité, head of MSF’s emergency operations, stated, “In El Fasher, we are seeing a cycle of offensives and counterattacks where hospitals are not being spared and the warring parties are failing in their responsibilities to protect civilians.” He noted that over 260 people had been killed and more than 1,630 wounded, including women and children, since the fighting began six weeks ago.
Lacharité called on both sides to safeguard civilians and medical facilities, stressing the urgent need for supplies and personnel to respond to the crisis. Ibrahim Khatir, director-general of North Darfur State’s health authorities, accused the RSF of systematically targeting health services to incapacitate the health system.
In the past 72 hours, violence against medical personnel and facilities has surged, with two doctors, a pharmacist, and a medical volunteer killed in separate incidents. The Preliminary Committee of the Sudan Doctors Syndicate reported that the RSF assassinated Dr. Omer Al-Sayed Mustafa at his home, and Dr. Molhem Mohamed Imam was killed in an RSF bombardment.
World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus condemned the attacks on health care in Sudan, calling them “appalling” and urging the protection of health workers and facilities.
Despite mediation efforts by the African Union, Saudi Arabia, and the United States, the conflict, which began in April 2023, persists. The UN estimates that the violence has claimed over 15,550 lives and displaced more than 8.8 million people.