The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed that 114 people, including 63 children, were killed in what it described as “senseless” aerial strikes on a kindergarten and a hospital in South Kordofan, Sudan, last week.
According to local officials, a paramilitary drone attack on Thursday targeted the army-held town of Kalogi, striking a kindergarten first, then a nearby hospital, and again as civilians rushed in to rescue trapped children.
A Deadly Wave of Attacks
Essam al-Din al-Sayed, head of the Kalogi administrative unit, told AFP that the coordinated strikes devastated civilian areas, hitting vulnerable populations at times when children were present in classrooms.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, citing the agency’s Attacks on Health Care monitoring system, confirmed that:
- The kindergarten and Kalogi Rural Hospital were struck multiple times
- 114 people were killed, among them 63 children
- 35 others sustained various injuries
Survivors were transported to Abu Jebaiha Hospital, where urgent appeals were made for blood donations and medical supplies.
Medical Responders Also Targeted
Tedros described the incident as “disturbing,” noting that paramedics and rescue workers came under attack while attempting to move injured children from the kindergarten to the hospital.
“WHO deplores these senseless attacks on civilians and health facilities, and calls again for an end to the violence. Sudanese have suffered far too much. Ceasefire now!” he said.
WHO emphasized that, while it documents attacks on healthcare facilities, it does not assign blame, as it is not an investigative body.
Conflict Escalates Across Kordofan Region
The attack comes amid an escalating conflict between Sudan’s regular army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), whose war—ongoing since April 2023—has killed tens of thousands and displaced nearly 12 million people.
Following the RSF’s takeover of El-Fasher, the army’s last stronghold in western Sudan, the group has advanced into the oil-rich Kordofan region, divided into three states.
UN Chief Calls for Immediate Action
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “appalled” by reports of the Kalogi attack. His spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric, urged nations with influence over the warring parties to intervene.
“The secretary-general calls on all states with leverage to compel an immediate halt to the fighting and stop the arms flows that are fuelling the conflict,” Dujarric said.
Rising Toll on Healthcare
WHO data shows that Sudan’s health sector has been repeatedly targeted throughout the conflict. So far in 2025, the agency has documented:
- 63 attacks on healthcare
- 1,611 deaths
- 259 injuries
- 52 incidents affecting health personnel
- 45 impacting facilities
- 32 involving patients
The attack in Kalogi took place between 6:00 a.m. and noon, involving the use of heavy weapons, obstruction of medical services, and what WHO categorized as psychological violence and intimidation.
