The World Health Organization confirmed that 114 people, including 63 children, were killed in a series of strikes on a kindergarten and hospital in Sudan’s South Kordofan state on Dec. 4, 2025. The attacks have drawn international condemnation as one of the deadliest incidents targeting civilians and medical facilities since the country’s civil war began in April 2023.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus described the violence as “senseless” and called for an immediate end to hostilities. The attacks began with repeated strikes on a kindergarten in the town of Kalogi, where most of the children were killed in the initial bombardment. As parents and medical personnel rushed to evacuate the wounded to the nearby Kalogi Rural Hospital, they came under further attack.
“Disturbingly, paramedics and responders came under attack as they tried to move the injured from the kindergarten to the hospital,” Tedros stated on social media. The hospital itself was struck at least three times during the evacuation efforts, according to WHO’s Attacks on Health Care monitoring system.
In addition to the 114 fatalities, 35 people were wounded in the attacks. The death toll combines casualties from the kindergarten strikes, the transfer of patients to the adjacent rural hospital, and the attacks at the medical facility itself. Parents and medics were among those killed in the later strikes after children had already perished in the initial bombardment.
Sudan’s Foreign Ministry condemned the attacks and blamed the Rapid Support Forces for carrying out the strikes using drones. The RSF, a paramilitary organization engaged in a power struggle with the Sudanese Armed Forces, has not immediately responded to the allegations. The two sides were formerly allies before their conflict erupted into full-scale civil war nearly two years ago.
According to WHO data, heavy weapons were deployed in the assault. The attacks on health facilities and civilian infrastructure represent a violation of international humanitarian law, which affords special protection to medical facilities and personnel during armed conflict. The targeting of a kindergarten filled with young children has particularly shocked humanitarian organizations monitoring the situation.
Survivors of the attacks have been transferred to Abu Jebaiha Hospital in South Kordofan for medical treatment. Urgent appeals have been issued for blood donations and additional medical support to care for the wounded. The scale of casualties has overwhelmed local medical resources in a region already strained by ongoing conflict.
“WHO deplores these senseless attacks on civilians and health facilities, and calls again for an end to the violence, and increased access to humanitarian aid, including health,” Tedros said in his statement.
South Kordofan has become a focal point in Sudan’s civil war, situated between the capital Khartoum and the Darfur region. The state has seen intense fighting as military forces push toward areas under RSF control. The conflict has displaced millions of people and created a severe humanitarian crisis across the country.
In a separate development on the same day, the Rapid Support Forces claimed control of the Heglig oil field near Sudan’s southern border. The oil installation is strategically significant as it houses the main processing facility for South Sudanese oil, making it crucial for both countries’ economies and government revenues. The facility handles oil transported through the Greater Nile pipeline system to Port Sudan on the Red Sea for export.
The war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces has devastated communities across Sudan. What began as a power struggle between two armed factions has evolved into a protracted conflict with severe consequences for civilians. Health facilities have repeatedly come under attack near frontlines, limiting access to essential medical care for those caught in combat zones.
The Sudan Doctors Network, a medical organization operating in the country, has also attributed responsibility for the Kalogi attacks to the RSF. The paramilitary group has faced international criticism for alleged atrocities elsewhere in Sudan, though it has previously denied deliberately targeting civilian populations.
International humanitarian organizations have struggled to deliver aid to affected populations due to ongoing security concerns and restricted access to conflict zones. The attacks on medical facilities compound an already dire situation for civilians requiring emergency care and basic health services. The WHO has repeatedly called for parties to the conflict to respect the protected status of hospitals and medical personnel under international law.
The December 4 attacks represent one of the highest single-day civilian death tolls in Sudan’s civil war, particularly concerning the number of children killed. As fighting continues across multiple regions, humanitarian needs have escalated dramatically while the capacity to respond remains severely constrained by security conditions and infrastructure damage.
