Five aid workers killed, three missing after attack in Sudan’s North Kordofan
The network urged the World Health Organisation, along with international human rights and medical bodies, to intervene swiftly to secure the medics' release and ensure those responsible are brought to justice.
Eight Sudanese Red Crescent (SRC) workers have been killed or gone missing in North Kordofan state following an attack on volunteers days after the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) seized the area.
According to the aid group, the volunteers were distributing food in the city of Bara when they were attacked, killing five and leaving three unaccounted for.
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The victims, the group maintains, were clearly identifiable as humanitarian workers, wearing official emblems and carrying identification, calling the assault a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.
"They were clearly identified by wearing Red Crescent vests, which are supposed to provide them with full protection, and carried identification cards issued by the local branch," said the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), in a statement.
"Any attack on humanitarian teams is unacceptable. We strongly reiterate our call for unwavering respect for the Red Cross and Red Crescent emblems and the crucial humanitarian services they represent."
The RSF had announced its capture of Bara on October 25 after clashes with the army, a takeover that rights groups say was followed by reports of summary executions and civilian abuses.
"The Sudanese Red Crescent has lost 21 colleagues on duty since the beginning of the conflict," said IFRC.
"Since the beginning of 2025, 25 Red Cross and Red Crescent staff and volunteers from across the globe have lost their lives while carrying out their humanitarian duties. This is unacceptable."
The Sudan Tribune reports that in a separate statement, SRC Secretary-General Aida Elsayed Abdalla also voiced alarm over losing contact with another team operating in a maternity hospital in El-Fasher, North Darfur.
The Sudan Doctors' Network also reported that RSF fighters abducted six medical workers in El-Fasher, including four doctors, a pharmacist and a nurse, and are demanding a ransom of more than $250,000 from their families.
The group said the medics had been treating the wounded during the RSF's siege of the city, which ended with the army's withdrawal last week.
The abductions, the network added, highlight the growing risks faced by health workers amid what UN officials describe as a wave of ethnic killings and looting following the RSF takeover.
The network urged the World Health Organisation, along with international human rights and medical bodies, to intervene swiftly to secure the medics' release and ensure those responsible are brought to justice.
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