JUBA, South Sudan — At least seven people were killed and 20 others injured in a series of bombings that obliterated the last remaining hospital and pharmacy in South Sudan’s remote Fangak County, the international medical aid group Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) said Saturday.
According to MSF, an airstrike initially targeted and incinerated the area’s only pharmacy, followed by a drone strike on the town of Old Fangak, located in the Greater Upper Nile region. The second attack caused further devastation and resulted in the confirmed deaths of seven people, with more casualties feared as local medical infrastructure has been left in ruins.
The bombings devastated Old Fangak Hospital, a lifeline for more than 110,000 people in the county who already faced dire access to healthcare. MSF, which has long operated in the region, said the destruction has plunged the area into a critical humanitarian crisis. “Old Fangak Hospital is the only hospital in Fangak County, serving a population of over 110,000 people who already had extremely limited access to healthcare,” the organization said in a statement.
The circumstances surrounding the bombings remain murky. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, and both government and military officials have yet to respond to requests for comment. The attacks have raised concerns about escalating violence in a region still recovering from years of civil conflict.
While South Sudan has officially been at peace since a 2018 agreement ended a brutal five-year civil war between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and those aligned with First Vice President Riek Machar, tensions have remained high. Fears of renewed unrest have intensified following the March arrest of Machar on allegations of inciting rebellion—an act that has drawn international concern over the potential collapse of the fragile peace deal.
The loss of Old Fangak’s medical infrastructure threatens to accelerate a growing humanitarian emergency in the Greater Upper Nile region, where displaced populations and vulnerable communities now face life-threatening shortages of medical supplies and emergency care.
