Drone strike hits WFP convoy in Mellit, Darfur; three trucks damaged.

A drone strike targeted a World Food Programme convoy delivering aid to a famine-affected area in North Darfur, Sudan, damaging three of the 16 trucks while all staff aboard were reported safe. The attack, which occurred in Mellit, a town under the control of the Rapid Support Forces, comes amid a year-and-a-half civil war that has produced one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Both the army and the RSF have accused each other of carrying out or condoning attacks on aid operations, and humanitarian workers have faced escalating risks as they attempt to reach starving populations.

The United Nations and the World Food Programme confirmed that the convoy was hit by a drone and that three trucks were destroyed after catching fire. Although the agency emphasized that all personnel and drivers were unharmed, it underscored that aid workers must not be targeted and appealed to all parties to respect international humanitarian law. The WFP noted that the convoy was en route to a village near Mellit, about 90 kilometers (roughly 56 miles) northwest of El Fasher, the capital of Darfur’s main conflict zone, which remains besieged by RSF fighters.