Over 200 medical staff killed in Sudan since 2023: Medics

KHARTOUM/ISTANABUL

More than 200 medical workers were killed, hundreds wounded and others missing in Sudan since the conflict between the army and paramilitary Rapid Support Force (RSF) started in April 2023, a local medical group said Thursday.

The Sudan Doctors Network said in a statement that it recorded the death of more than 234 health medical workers since the start of the war, along with more than 507 injuries. It said 59 medical staff remain missing.

The group said 73 other medical workers are still detained in the city of Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state, in what it described as “extremely poor conditions” in areas controlled by the RSF.

The group urged the international community and humanitarian organizations to take immediate action to pressure for the protection of health care workers and ensure their safe access, describing the actions as a clear breach of international laws that guarantee protection for medical personnel during armed conflict.

It also called on all parties to the conflict to halt the violations, protect medical staff, release detainees and disclose the fate of the missing.

There was no immediate comment from Sudanese authorities or the RSF on the statement.

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 since killed thousands of people and displaced millions of others.