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UN Human Rights Spokesperson Martha Hurtado briefing on drone attacks in Sudan
“A sharp increase in the use of drones to conduct airstrikes this year in Sudan underlines the devastating impact of high-tech and relatively cheap weapons in populated areas. According to information received, over 500 civilians were killed in such strikes from 1 January to 15 March,” she said.
The vast majority of these civilian deaths were documented in three states in the Kordofan region. In the first two weeks of March alone, information received shows that over 277 civilians were killed, over three-quarters of whom were killed in drone strikes. Such deadly attacks have continued in the past week, as the holy month of Ramadan came to a close.
“In the deadliest attack, on 20 March, the first day of Eid al-Fitr, an air and drone strikes hit El Daein Teaching Hospital in East Darfur state, killing at least 64 people, including seven women and 13 children. One doctor was killed and eight health workers were among the at least 89 injured in the attack in an area controlled by the Rapid Support Forces. The hospital, including its emergency, maternity and paediatric units, are fully out of operation – further constraining desperately-needed access of many in the area to the right to health,” Hurtado told reporters at the UN bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
“On same day in Ad Dabbah in Northern state -- an area controlled by the Sudanese Armed Forces -- drone attacks impacted civilian infrastructure, including an electricity substation and also an engineering college. Six people were reportedly killed, and power completely cut to the locality,” she said.
On the evening of 21 March, further drone strikes on a convoy of commercial transportation vehicles in El Daein reportedly killed 23 people, including women and children. In Al Dabbah, further drone strikes appear to have been intercepted.
“Widening drone attacks are spilling across Sudan’s borders, with serious risk of further escalation carrying regional consequences. There have been drone strikes on the town of Tina and Tiné on the Sudan-Chad border after earlier ground offensives by the RSF,” the spokesperson said. “On 16 March, around 20 people were killed, including civilians, and 60 other injured, during an RSF ground offensive on Tina, Sudan. And on 18 March, a drone attack hit Tiné, Chad, killing at least 24 civilians and injuring around 70 others.”
“Continued patterns of such attacks striking civilians and destroying civilian infrastructure raise serious concerns about compliance with international humanitarian law’s fundamental principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution, and may amount to war crimes,” Hurtado said.
“The UN Human Rights Office continues to document attacks on markets, energy and water infrastructure and health facilities. Health care facilities and health workers are specifically protected against attack,” she said.
The Human Rights Office urges all States, particularly those with influence, to do all in their power to end arms transfers that are fuelling the conflict and being used in manifest disregard of the obligation to protect civilians in conflict. Parties to this conflict are reminded of their binding obligations to protect civilians. There needs to be renewed diplomatic efforts towards an urgent ceasefire to bring the conflict to an end.
For more information and media requests, please contact:
In Geneva:
Marta Hurtado: +41 22 917 9466 / marta.hurtadogomez@un.org
Ravina Shamdasani: +41 22 917 9169 / ravina.shamdasani@un.org
Jeremy Laurence: +41 22 917 9383 / jeremy.laurence@un.org
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STORY: UN Human Rights Spokesperson Marta Hurtado on deadly impact of drone strikes in Sudan
TRT: 03:09
SOURCE: OHCHR /UNOG
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: English/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 24 February 2026 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND. Archives OHCHR - Merowe Dam, Northern state, Sudan (see dates in shotlist).
SHOTLIST
- Exterior shot: Palais des Nations
- Interior shots: briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “A sharp increase in the use of drones to conduct airstrikes this year in Sudan underlines the devastating impact of high-tech and relatively cheap weapons in populated areas. According to information received, over 500 civilians were killed in such strikes from 1 January to 15 March.”
- Cutaways: HC Volker Türk on mission to Sudan at the Merowe Dam, Northern state Sudan 16/01/2026 OHCHR. Shots of drone remains at the Dam.
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “In the deadliest attack, on 20 March, the first day of Eid al-Fitr, an air and drone strikes hit El Daein Teaching Hospital in East Darfur state, killing at least 64 people, including seven women and 13 children. One doctor was killed and eight health workers were among the at least 89 injured in the attack in an area controlled by the Rapid Support Forces. The hospital, including its emergency, maternity and paediatric units, are fully out of operation – further constraining desperately-needed access of many in the area to the right to health.”
- Cutaways: Shots of drone remains at the Dam. Burned out electrical transformer. Merowe Dam, Northern state, Sudan. 16/01/2026 OHCHR
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “On same day in Ad Dabbah in Northern state -- an area controlled by the Sudanese Armed Forces -- drone attacks impacted civilian infrastructure, including an electricity substation and also an engineering college. Six people were reportedly killed, and power completely cut to the locality.”
- Cutaways: Merowe Dam, Northern state 16/01/2026 OHCHR
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Widening drone attacks are spilling across Sudan’s borders, with serious risk of further escalation carrying regional consequences. There have been drone strikes on the town of Tina and Tiné on the Sudan-Chad border after earlier ground offensives by the RSF. On 16 March, around 20 people were killed, including civilians, and 60 other injured, during an RSF ground offensive on Tina, Sudan. And on 18 March, a drone attack hit Tiné, Chad, killing at least 24 civilians and injuring around 70 others.”
- Cutaways: briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “Continued patterns of such attacks striking civilians and destroying civilian infrastructure raise serious concerns about compliance with international humanitarian law’s fundamental principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution, and may amount to war crimes.”
- Cutaways: briefing room
- SOUNDBITE (English)—Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “The UN Human Rights Office continues to document attacks on markets, energy and water infrastructure and health facilities. Health care facilities and health workers are specifically protected against attack.”
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The key findings from WMO’s State of Global Water Resources 2025 report covering the hydrological cycle and extreme events in the five-year period to last year:
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Groundwater reserves are equally stretched and have been in decline since 2014, WMO’s report states, with nearly two-thirds of monitored wells worldwide showing levels lower than the historical norm and indicating a shift “further toward deficit…not recovery”.
“At the same time, we are seeing more water-related disasters,” Ms. Saulo said, while also stressing that the currently strengthening El Niño “will increase the risk of drought in some areas, and flooding in others”.
Glaciers disappearing
In 2025, for the fourth consecutive year, every major glaciated region on Earth lost ice mass, leading to short-term hazards including floods and long-term water insecurity, according to WMO.
Responding to a question about whether the changing global water cycle might have contributed to the deadly Nepal-China flooding disaster, Ms. Saulo explained that melting ice and rock was just one factor in the chain of events that ultimately sent a massive and deadly wall of water and debris downstream on 26 August, killing at least 1,367 people.
“You asked if it could happen again? Absolutely; the problem in this region is that there’s 63,700 glaciers at the last count,” she told a Press Conference in Geneva. “Even if you’re looking with remote sensing with satellites at these glaciers, you might see some faults, you might see some slight shifting, that does not mean necessarily catastrophic collapse. So, in order to plan for this, it’s very, very difficult. But the international community is looking very hard at ways in which we can bring people together to solve some of these monitoring issues.”
Data indicates that glaciers shrank between 2023 and 2025 with cumulative losses of 1,400 gigatonnes of water – or about one third of annual fresh water needs.
Every major glacier region on Earth lost ice for the fourth consecutive year.
“All 19 glacier regions around the globe lost ice; in Central Asia, Iceland, the Russian Arctic and western Canada and the United States, it was among the three worst years on record,” said Wayne Jenkinson, WMO’s Director of Hydrology and Cryosphere.
Some regions with smaller glaciers such as Central Europe, the Caucasus, the western Canada and the United States may already have reached “peak water”, Mr. Jenkinson warned.
“After this point, the glacier gives less meltwater each year simply because there is less ice left to melt. That matters for every community downstream that relies on water during hot, dry summers,” he explained.
Narelle van der Wel, WMO’s Head of Cryosphere Monitoring, Predictions and Services, stressed that while some further glacier loss is unavoidable, the eventual scale of the decline is not predetermined.
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Preparing for moving baselines
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Mr. Jenkinson said governments need to prepare for “moving baselines” as historical patterns become less reliable.
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ends