A United Nations World Food Program convoy in Sudan’s North Darfur was struck by a drone attack this week, destroying three trucks carrying life-saving food aid, a senior U.N. official said Thursday.
The attack occurred Wednesday while the 16-truck convoy was being offloaded at a warehouse in the town of Al Melit, according to a statement from Luca Renda, the acting U.N. resident and humanitarian coordinator for Sudan. The trucks had arrived from Chad days earlier to deliver aid to the region.
The drivers were reported safe and accounted for. The destroyed trucks caught fire after the attack.
Renda condemned the strike “in the strongest terms” and called for an immediate and independent investigation. He said the incident was part of a pattern of “unacceptable attacks” that have deprived vulnerable civilians of critical aid.
“Humanitarian staff and assets must never be a target,” Renda said.
The army and RSF could not immediately be reached for comment. The attack is the latest in a series that have hampered aid delivery in Sudan, where a conflict has pushed millions to the brink of famine.
The RSF does not have an air force, but both sides use drones.
On 15 April 2023, Sudan was plunged into conflict as longstanding tensions between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) leader Mohamed Hamdan “Hemedti” Dagalo erupted into war.
Tens of thousands of people have died, and 12 million have been forced from their homes because of the conflict.