A deadly drone strike carried out by Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) hit a kindergarten in the town of Kalogi, South Kordofan, killing 50 people — among them 33 children — according to a statement from the Sudan Doctors’ Network late Friday.
Medical workers responding to the scene were then hit by a second strike on paramedics, the group said, describing it as an unexpected follow‑up attack targeting first responders. Emergency Lawyers, a civil rights organization monitoring violence across Sudan, confirmed the second strike and reported that a third nearby civilian location was also bombed.
The organization condemned the attacks and accused the RSF of committing serious violations of international humanitarian law, particularly the protections afforded to children and civilian infrastructure.
Communication blackouts in the region have made it difficult to verify the full extent of casualties, but local groups warn the death toll is likely to rise.
The assault comes amid escalating clashes between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces, now in their third year of war. Fighting has increasingly shifted toward the oil‑producing Kordofan region after the RSF seized control of the besieged city of El‑Fasher in Darfur.
UNICEF’s Representative in Sudan, Sheldon Yett, condemned the attack, calling the killing of children inside their school “a horrific violation of children’s rights”. He urged all parties to halt attacks on civilians and allow humanitarian agencies safe access to affected communities.
Violence across the Kordofan states has surged in recent weeks. On Sunday, Sudanese military airstrikes in Kauda, also in South Kordofan, killed at least 48 people, most of them civilians. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk warned that the region risks witnessing atrocities similar to those documented in El‑Fasher.
In a separate statement Friday, the RSF accused the Sudanese military of launching a drone strike near the Chad‑Sudan border and released footage showing thick smoke rising from the area. The claim could not be independently verified, and the military has not commented.
The RSF’s takeover of El‑Fasher has been widely condemned for executions, sexual violence, and other abuses. Thousands of civilians fled the city, while many others remain unaccounted for.
The conflict between the RSF and the Sudanese military, which erupted in 2023, has killed more than 40,000 people and displaced 12 million, according to the World Health Organization. Aid agencies warn that the real death toll is likely far higher.
