An explosives-laden drone belonging to Sudanese paramilitaries has attacked a secondary school and health center in South Sudan, killing at least 17 people, mostly schoolgirls, a hospital official and a medical group said.
Cairo — An explosives-laden drone belonging to Sudanese paramilitaries attacked a secondary school and health center in South Sudan on Wednesday, killing at least 17 people, mostly schoolgirls, a hospital official and a medical group said.
At least 10 people were injured in the strike in the village of Shukeri in White Nile province, said the director of Douim Hospital, a major medical facility close to the village. Musa Al-Majeri said.
Al-Majeri told the Associated Press that three of the girls suffered serious injuries; Two of them underwent surgery at the hospital and the third was evacuated to the capital, Khartoum.
The war-tracking Sudan Doctors Network first reported the strike, saying two teachers and a health worker were among the dead. The group said there was no military presence in the village.
Both the medical group and al-Majeeri blamed the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces for the strike. RSF did not respond to a request for comment.
“This horrific crime represents a continuation of the violations committed by RSF in White Nile,” said Dr. Razan al-Mahdi said paramilitaries had attacked several civilian facilities, including a student dormitory and a power station, in the past two days.
The strike in the village of Shukeri in White Nile province was the latest deadly attack in Sudan’s nearly three-year war.
Sudan descended into chaos in April 2023 when a power struggle between the military and the RSF erupted into open fighting in Khartoum and elsewhere in the country.
According to UN figures, the devastating war has killed more than 40,000 people, but aid groups say that is an underestimate and the true number could be many times higher.
The fighting is concentrated in the sprawling Kordofan region, where deadly attacks, mostly by drones, are reported daily.
The war has been marked by atrocities including mass killings, gang rapes and other crimes, with the International Criminal Court investigating potential war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The latest atrocities occurred in October when the RSF and its Janjweed allies invaded the Darfur city of El-Fasher. The RSF attack had “characteristics of genocide,” according to UN-appointed experts.
At least 6,000 people died in three days in October in el-Fashar, according to the UN’s human rights office.
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