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The EU Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, Christos Stylianides conveys his deepest condolences to the families of the three humanitarian aid workers killed in Sudan, Kurmuk locality, on Sunday 8 February 2015. The staff of the Sudanese Red Crescent Society (SRCS) was monitoring the distribution of food assistance provided by the United Nations in Blue Nile State.
Commissioner Stylianides said: "I am extremely worried by the worsening situation in the conflict-affected areas of Blue Nile and South Kordofan, where in less than a month three episodes of grave attacks against a health facility, humanitarian assets and, now, personnel have occurred. This is unacceptable, and I urge the parties to the conflict to protect humanitarian space and respect the provisions of international humanitarian law. The resumption of violent attacks in the region is affecting hundreds of thousands of civilians and the capacity of humanitarian actors to deliver effective and principled humanitarian assistance is hampered by access and security constraints".
On 20 January, a hospital was bombed in Frandala, in the Nuba mountains in South Kordofan, while on 26 January a clearly marked humanitarian helicopter was forced to land in a rebel-held area in South Kordofan State. Since the conflict broke out in the two areas of South Kordofan and Blue Nile in 2011, restrictions on humanitarian access have prevented the provision of life-saving assistance to hundreds of thousands of civilians.
Read more on the EU's humanitarian aid to Sudan.
