Khartoum, October 12 (Darfur24)
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Sunday expressed grave concern over drone strikes targeting displaced families in West Kordofan state that killed at least 17 civilians.
In a statement, OCHA said it had received reports of a deadly drone strike on October 9 targeting a building housing displaced families in Al-Nuhud, killing at least 12 civilians, including women and children, and injuring eight others.
On the same day, five civilians, including three children, were killed in a drone strike on a residential neighborhood hosting displaced families in Ghubaysh, the statement added.
The victims, OCHA said, “were people who had already been forced to leave their homes because of the conflict, only to face further violence in the places where they had sought refuge.”
The office warned that the growing frequency of drone strikes across Sudan was deeply concerning, exposing civilians, including displaced families, to further death, injury and suffering.
OCHA stressed the need to respect international humanitarian law and protect civilians and civilian infrastructure. People fleeing violence, it said, must be able to find safety without facing further threats to their lives.
Al-Nuhud and Ghubaysh have become major shelters for thousands of displaced families from villages across Kordofan and Darfur. Schools, government buildings and private homes are hosting large numbers of displaced people.
In recent weeks, drone attacks by both sides of the conflict have escalated across Sudan, causing dozens of civilian casualties in Kordofan, Darfur and Khartoum. The warring parties have traded accusations of targeting residential neighborhoods and gatherings of displaced people, amid concerns over violations of international humanitarian law.