KHARTOUM, Sudan / ISTANBUL

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, Sudanese authorities said on Friday.

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 on Thursday.

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 initially said that eight people, including six children and a teacher, were killed and others were injured in the attack before the death climbed to 79 people.

It 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.”

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) condemned the drone attack as “a horrific violation of children’s rights.”

In a statement, UNICEF said that more than 10 children aged between 5 and 7 years were among the victims.

“Children should never pay the price of conflict. UNICEF urges all parties to stop these attacks immediately and allow safe, unhindered access for humanitarian assistance to reach those in desperate need,” UNICEF Representative for Sudan Sheldon Yett said.

“The killing and maiming of children, and attacks on schools and hospitals are grave violations of children’s rights.”

UNICEF said that the attack came “amid a sharp deterioration in security across the Kordofan States since early November, driving widespread displacement and deepening humanitarian needs.”

It noted that more than 41,000 people have fled escalating violence in North and South Kordofan over the past month.

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.