The African Union has strongly condemned a drone attack on a UN peacekeeping base in Sudan that Six Bangladeshi peacekeepers, leaving eight others wounded.
The attack on Saturday targeted a United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) logistics facility in Kadugli, South Kordofan state.
Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, chairperson of the African Union Commission, described the attack as a serious breach of international humanitarian law that undermined peace efforts in Sudan.
He offered condolences to bereaved families and expressed solidarity with Bangladesh and other troop-contributing nations.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres confirmed the casualties among the Bangladeshi personnel serving with the peacekeeping mission.
Mr Youssouf said attacks on peacekeepers were unacceptable and threatened regional and international security, but insisted they would not discourage the AU from supporting peace operations.
He described the attack as a serious breach of international humanitarian law that undermined peace efforts in Sudan.
He called for swift action to identify and prosecute those behind the strike, and urged all sides in Sudan’s conflict to uphold international law protecting peacekeepers and aid workers.
The African Union said it remained committed to achieving a lasting political settlement to end the conflict in Sudan.
UNISFA was established to monitor the volatile border area between Sudan and South Sudan, particularly around the disputed Abyei region. However, Kadugli lies outside UNISFA’s primary area of operations, raising questions about why the base was targeted.
No claim of responsibility
It remains unclear who carried out the attack or when exactly it occurred. Neither the UN nor Bangladeshi authorities have yet issued public statements on the incident.
But Sudan’s military has blamed the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) for the strike, though the RSF has not commented on the allegation.
Sudan has been engulfed in conflict since April 2023, when fighting erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The war has displaced millions and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
