WHO denounces El Fasher atrocities: 460+ patients killed, health workers abducted.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has strongly condemned the reported killing of more than 460 patients and their companions, along with the abduction of six health workers, from the Saudi Maternity Hospital in El Fasher, North Darfur of Sudan on Tuesday.

“This latest tragedy is taking place amid a rapidly worsening crisis in North Darfur’s El Fasher, where escalating violence, siege conditions, and rising hunger and disease are killing civilians, including children, and collapsing an already fragile health system,” the WHO said in a statement.

According to the organization, the Saudi Maternity Hospital, the only partially functioning health facility in El Fasher, has come under attack four times within a month.

The latest assault on 26 October killed one nurse and injured three others. Two days later, the facility was raided again, resulting in the mass killing of hundreds of patients and the abduction of four doctors, a nurse, and a pharmacist.

Since the conflict began, 46 health workers have been killed in El Fasher,  including the Director of Primary Health Care in the State Ministry of Health,  and another 48 injured. The status of personnel from three nongovernmental organizations remains unknown.

“WHO condemns these horrific attacks on health care in the strongest terms and calls for the respect of the sanctity of health care as mandated under International Humanitarian Law,” the statement read.

“All attacks on healthcare must stop immediately and unconditionally,” said Tedros, demanding protection for all health workers and civilians under international law.

Many of those arriving in Tawila are in dire condition. “Many have arrived dehydrated, injured and traumatized,” said the UN aid coordination office (OCHA) on social media.

“The UN and aid organizations are providing life-saving support, but the violence must stop,” they said.

UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell warned that “no child is safe” in El Fasher. “While the full scale of the impact remains unclear due to widespread communications blackouts, the estimated 130,000 children in El Fasher are at a high risk of grave rights violations, with reports of abduction, killing and maiming, and sexual violence,” she said.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Wednesday expressed deep sorrow over the killing of five local staff working as volunteers in Bara, North Kordofan state.

“We received this news with profound shock and outrage and we condemn in the strongest possible terms this horrific and senseless act,” a statement read.

Cholera is also spreading rapidly due to unsafe water and the collapse of health systems. El Fasher has reported 272 suspected cases and 32 deaths this year, with an alarming fatality rate of nearly 12%. Across Darfur, 18,468 cases and 662 deaths have been recorded.

The humanitarian situation in El Fasher continues to deteriorate. More than 260,000 people are trapped with little or no access to food, clean water, or medical care, while 28,000 have fled the town in recent days. The WHO warned that over 100,000 more people could be displaced soon, joining the 575,000 already sheltering in Tawila and other regions.

Cholera is also spreading rapidly due to unsafe water and collapsing health infrastructure. This year alone, El Fasher has reported 272 suspected cases and 32 deaths, with an alarming case fatality rate of nearly 12%. Across Darfur, 18,468 cases and 662 deaths have been reported.

El Fasher has been cut off from humanitarian aid since February 2025, causing severe malnutrition, especially among children and pregnant women. Despite restricted access, WHO teams are “working around the clock to keep health services running where possible,” the agency said.

The organization is moving 20 metric tons of medicines and emergency kits from Nyala to Tawila to support medical teams caring for the displaced. Supplies are also being expedited from Abeche, Chad, while WHO trucks remain on standby to join a UN aid convoy waiting to enter El Fasher once access is granted.

Reiterating its appeal, WHO urged all sides to cease hostilities and ensure the protection of civilians and health workers.
“WHO calls for an immediate end to hostilities in El Fasher and across Sudan; for the protection of civilians, humanitarian workers, and health care; and for safe, rapid, and unimpeded humanitarian access to deliver lifesaving aid,” the agency stated.

The once allied RSF and forces of the military government began fighting in and around the capital Khartoum in April 2023,  a conflict which has since engulfed the entire country.

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