KALOGI, SUDAN—In a horrific escalation of Sudan’s brutal two-year conflict, a drone strike allegedly carried out by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied groups targeted a kindergarten and a hospital in the city of Kalogi, South Kordofan, killing at least 79 civilians, including a staggering 43 children.
The attack, which occurred on Thursday, has been globally condemned as a blatant war crime and an “unprecedented act of terror against children,” according to local authorities. The scale of the tragedy underscores the profound vulnerability of civilians in a conflict that has rapidly deteriorated across Sudan’s Kordofan states.
The Attack on Ghadeer Locality
The South Kordofan state government confirmed on Friday that a drone fired at least four missiles at civilian sites in the Ghadeer locality of Kalogi. The initial strike devastated a kindergarten filled with young children, aged between five and seven years old.
- Targeted Site: The missiles hit the kindergarten, a crowded hospital, and densely populated residential areas.
- Casualties: Local authorities initially reported fewer fatalities, but the death toll quickly climbed to 79, with 43 children among the dead and 38 people injured, including 11 children.
- ‘Heinous Crime’: The state government, in a strongly worded statement, described the incident as a “heinous crime” committed by the RSF-allied Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N). The Sudanese Foreign Ministry accused the RSF of a campaign of “genocide” against Sudanese communities.
Sudanese authorities further alleged that after residents and medics rushed to aid the injured at the kindergarten, the RSF launched a second unexpected attack, reportedly targeting the paramedics and first responders, an action described by rights groups as a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.
Global Outcry Over Attacks on Schools
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) immediately condemned the drone strike, calling the targeting of children in their place of learning a “horrific violation of children’s rights.”
“Killing children in their school is a horrific violation of children’s rights,” said Sheldon Yett, UNICEF Representative for Sudan. “Children should never pay the price of conflict. UNICEF urges all parties to stop these attacks immediately.”
The latest atrocity comes amid a severe escalation of violence in the Kordofan region since early November, driving widespread displacement and exacerbating a humanitarian crisis already marked by confirmed famine in Kadugli and collapsing medical services. More than 41,000 people have fled the escalating fighting in the North and South Kordofan states over the past month.
The RSF has not immediately commented on the Kalogi attack. The paramilitary group and the Sudanese army have been locked in a brutal power struggle since April 2023, a conflict that has killed at least 40,000 people and displaced over 12 million, according to the World Health Organization.
The international community is now facing renewed pressure to hold those responsible for the attack on the kindergarten accountable for what is rapidly becoming a war defined by the widespread killing of civilians and children.