Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said a hospital it supports in the eastern Chadian town of Adré received 23 civilian casualties after a drone strike targeted the Adekong border market near Sudan on Friday morning.
According to MSF and local sources, the strike hit a fuel depot inside the market, triggering large explosions that caused fires and widespread damage. The attack was attributed to a drone operated by General al-Burhan’s forces (SAF).
Local reports said four people were killed at the scene, their bodies burned in the blast. Several other civilians were injured, some suffering severe burns and shrapnel wounds.
Gadou Mahmoudou, MSF’s head of mission in Chad, said the organization-backed hospital in Adré received 23 wounded people within a short period following the strike. The injured include four women and seven children under the age of 15.
Mahmoudou noted that the number of casualties rose rapidly, increasing from five to 23 patients in less than an hour as victims arrived from the border area.
The attack marks the second time in less than a month that the Adekong market has been hit by an airstrike, raising growing concerns over the impact of Sudan’s war on civilians in border communities between Sudan and Chad.
MSF renewed its call for all parties involved in the conflict to respect international humanitarian law and take all necessary measures to protect civilians and avoid strikes on populated areas.
