UNICEF says artillery fire leaves Sudan hospital patients without water

Khartoum: Around 1,000 critically ill patients in Sudan s Darfur region are nearly without drinking water after artillery fire destroyed a water tanke...

Khartoum: Around 1,000 critically ill patients in Sudan's Darfur region are nearly without drinking water after artillery fire destroyed a water tanker at a hospital, UNICEF said on Wednesday.

The tanker was stationed at the Saudi hospital, one of the few still operational in El-Fasher, a city in West Darfur with a population of around two million.

The city is the only state capital among Darfur's five states to remain outside the control of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), but has been under siege by the paramilitary group since May 2024.

"Yesterday, a UNICEF-supported water truck in the Saudi hospital compound, El-Fasher, was destroyed by artillery fire, disrupting access to safe water for an estimated 1,000 severely ill patients," the UN agency said.

"UNICEF continues to call on all parties to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law and end all attacks on or near critical civilian infrastructure," it added.