Two Dead And Seven Injured When International Red Cross Humanitarian Convoy Attacked In Sudan

Illustration of a military coup in Sudan. (Wikimedia Commons/Abbasher)

JAKARTA - Two people were killed and seven others injured during a humanitarian convoy of the International Red Cross Committee (ICRC) underwent an attack on Sudan's capital Khartoum on Sunday.

In an ICRC statement, those injured included three red-barreled staff.

"Humanist convoys, consisting of three ICRC vehicles and three buses, all marked clearly with the Red Cross emblem, are scheduled to evacuate more than a hundred vulnerable civilians from Khartoum to Wad Madani, when they were attacked while entering the evacuation area," according to an ICRC statement.

The ICRC further said it was shocked by the attack directed at their humanitarian convoy, describing the attack as intentional.

The ICRC itself did not accuse any party of being behind the attack. Meanwhile, Sudanese soldiers said the convoy was attacked after violating the agreement by approaching its defensive position, using a "owned rebel" car, referring to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary.

The ICRC convoy is evacuating civilians, including foreign nationals, from the St. Mary Church in Khartoum, according to the military.

In a separate statement, the RSF accused the army of attacking the convoy. They said the incident had resulted in death and injuries.

"The humanitarian operation has been requested and coordinated with parties in conflict, who gave approval and provided the necessary security guarantees," the ICRC said.

Sudan's military and RSF paramilitary have been caught up in the conflict that destroyed Khartoum and sparked a wave of ethnic killings in Darfur since mid-April, despite diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting.