The Sudan Founding Alliance (TASIS) has accused the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) of carrying out an air strike on a World Food Programme aid convoy in South Kordofan, killing a driver and threatening desperately needed food deliveries to civilians.
Two WFP-contracted trucks were struck while travelling between Dilling and Kadugli in the Nuba Mountains region on Saturday, October 3. The vehicles were carrying humanitarian food supplies and were clearly marked as aid trucks.
TASIS condemned the attack in a statement issued by its official spokesman, Ahmed Tugud Lisan, holding the army led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan responsible and demanding an urgent international investigation.
“The alliance holds the Islamic Movement army responsible for this attack based on the information available to it,” the statement said.
TASIS said an independent investigation should establish the circumstances surrounding the strike and determine responsibility throughout the military chain of command.
The alliance described the attack on clearly marked humanitarian vehicles as a serious violation of international humanitarian law and said intentionally targeting an aid convoy with knowledge of its humanitarian purpose could constitute a war crime.
It accused forces aligned with the Port Sudan authorities of repeatedly endangering humanitarian operations and warned that attacks on aid routes risk cutting off food supplies to hundreds of thousands of civilians already facing severe hunger.
“Targeting food does not only destroy a relief shipment, but threatens the lives of citizens waiting for it,” TASIS said, warning against the use of siege, deprivation and starvation as weapons of war.
The alliance called on the United Nations and international humanitarian agencies to establish stronger protection and monitoring mechanisms for relief convoys and humanitarian routes.
It also urged measures to prevent aircraft and drones from operating against known aid corridors and called for criminal accountability for anyone found responsible for attacks on humanitarian personnel or obstruction of aid deliveries.
TASIS pledged to facilitate the movement of humanitarian organisations and protect relief personnel and convoys in areas under its control, saying it would cooperate with WFP, the United Nations and other international and Sudanese organisations to ensure assistance reaches civilians.
The alliance extended condolences to the family and colleagues of the driver killed in the strike.
WFP has separately confirmed that an aerial attack struck the two contracted trucks while they were travelling from Dilling to Kadugli, killing one driver.
The UN agency said the vehicles were clearly marked and called for a prompt and impartial investigation.
