The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) and the Sudan Family Planning Association (SFPA) are deeply alarmed and saddened by targeted attacks in El Fasher, Sudan, where Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have caused devastating harm to civilians, humanitarian workers, and SFPA staff.
SFPA, a Member Association of IPPF, reports that one staff member has been detained and nine others remain missing. One staff member previously reported missing has reached relative safety after walking for two days to Tawila. She is now receiving medical care for exhaustion and dehydration. The whereabouts of the remaining staff are still unknown, as communications and movement in El Fasher remain severely restricted.
“The silence is unbearable. Our colleagues are missing, clinics have been destroyed, and women are giving birth with no one to help them. The world cannot stay quiet while lives are being systematically erased.” said Elshafie Mohamed Ali, Executive Director of SFPA.
SFPA and IPPF strongly condemn the ongoing attacks on healthcare, including the assault on the Saudi Maternity Hospital, which SFPA had rehabilitated to provide essential maternal, newborn and reproductive health care. During the hospital attack, which killed more than 460 patients and their companions and led to the abduction of health workers, one SFPA staff member was present inside the facility but managed to escape.
“They are bombing the very places where life begins. Maternity wards have become killing grounds. Women are giving birth under fire, midwives are disappearing, and health workers are being attacked for saving lives. We cannot continue to let this go on.” said Dr. Hiba Ahmed Khalil Badr, Director of Emergency and Humanitarian Interventions, SFPA.
More than 260,000 people remain trapped in El Fasher with almost no access to food, clean water or medical care. Pregnant women and survivors of sexual and reproductive violence face life-threatening barriers to care.
“What is happening in El Fasher is a brutal assault on women, health workers, and the very essence of life itself. Our colleagues are risking everything to keep women and newborns alive, while hospitals are being turned into battlefields. This cannot be normalized. The Arab world and the international community must act now, not only with words of sympathy, but with decisive measures to protect civilians, hold perpetrators accountable, and ensure that the right to health and safety is never again treated as a casualty of war,” said Dr. Fadoua Bakhadda, Regional Director, IPPF Arab World Region.
These attacks mark a dangerous escalation in violence against humanitarian and health facilities. They threaten not only those providing care but also the continuity of life-saving sexual and reproductive health services, including safe delivery, contraception, and emergency obstetric and newborn care. The deliberate targeting of health workers and maternity facilities is a violation of international humanitarian law and an assault on the right to health and dignity.
“This is not an isolated incident. It is part of a relentless pattern of attacks on women, on health workers, and on the right to care,” said Valerie Dourdin, Global Humanitarian Director, IPPF. “How much longer can we watch hospitals burn and call it outrage without action? The international community must act now to protect health workers, civilians, and defend the right to reproductive healthcare.”
We urgently call for:
- Immediate protection of civilians and humanitarian personnel in El Fasher.
- Safe and unimpeded humanitarian access to all conflict-affected areas.
- The release of detained and missing staff, and clarification on their situation.
- International action to halt these attacks and uphold international humanitarian and human rights law.
SOURCE: Our Colleagues Are Missing: Devastating Attacks on Women, Health Workers and Communities in Sudan | IPPF, 5 November 2025.