3 World Food Program workers killed in attack in Sudan

KHARTOUM, Sudan

Three UN workers from the World Food Program (WFP) were killed in an overnight attack on their office in Sudan's Blue Nile state, the Sudanese government said on Friday.

According to a statement issued by the Sudanese Foreign Ministry, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) informed it that the WFP office in the Yabus area, near the Ethiopian border, was shelled last night, killing three staff members.

The ministry condemned the attack on UN agencies working in the humanitarian field, stressing that the Sudanese army has no military activity in that area.

It added that the relevant authorities are investigating the incident to identify the perpetrators of the attack.

The rival paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) group has yet to respond to the Sudanese Foreign Ministry statement.

Since April 2023, Sudan has faced violent clashes between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) over military reform and integration issues.

The conflict has claimed more than 20,000 lives, displaced millions, and left more than 25 million in dire need of humanitarian aid, according to the UN.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar