JUBA — Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has condemned an airstrike by South Sudan government forces that hit and destroyed the main part of its hospital in Lankien, Jonglei state, during the night of Tuesday, 3 February 2026.
The attack gutted most of the hospital’s critical medical supplies, injuring one MSF staff member and crippling lifesaving services in the area.
The bombardment came just hours after MSF evacuated the hospital and discharged patients, following rising tensions and warnings of a possible attack on the city. MSF said it had previously shared the GPS coordinates of all its facilities with the government and other parties to the conflict and received confirmation that their locations were known.
“The government of South Sudan armed forces are the only armed party with the capacity to perform aerial attacks in the country,” said Gul Badshah, MSF operations manager. “We find it unacceptable to be a target for attacks.”
Earlier the same day, MSF’s healthcare facility in Pieri, also in Jonglei state, was looted by unknown assailants, rendering it unusable. Following both incidents, MSF staff from Lankien and Pieri fled alongside local communities. Their whereabouts remain unknown as MSF continues efforts to establish contact.
MSF was the sole healthcare provider for an estimated 250,000 people in Lankien and Pieri. With both facilities now out of action, entire communities are left without access to medical care.
“These attacks come amid increasing restrictions on humanitarian access imposed by the government in parts of opposition-held areas of Jonglei state since December,” Badshah added.
“Such restrictions severely limit our ability to deliver essential care, with potentially deadly consequences for children, pregnant women, and people living with chronic or life-threatening conditions.”
The attack on Lankien hospital follows a pattern of escalating violence against humanitarian organizations. In 2025 alone, MSF recorded eight targeted attacks, forcing the closure of two hospitals in Greater Upper Nile and the suspension of general healthcare services in Jonglei, Upper Nile, and Central Equatoria.
MSF has worked in what is today South Sudan since 1983 and remains one of the largest medical humanitarian organizations in the country. In 2025, MSF provided more than 830,000 outpatient consultations, treated over 93,000 inpatients, carried out 12,000 surgeries, and screened 107,000 children for malnutrition across seven states and two administrative areas.
“While we are acutely aware of the enormous medical needs in South Sudan, our priority is the safety of our staff and patients,” said Badshah. “Healthcare facilities must never be targets.”
