Sudan: War Displaced People Are Facing Outbreaks of Various Diseases

Outbreaks of diseases such as cholera, measles, malaria, dengue fever, meningitis and whooping cough have been detected among populations displaced by the civil war in Sudan, warned today a regional director of the World Health Organization (WHO), Hanan Balkhy.

Hanan Balkhy indicated, at a press conference in Geneva, Switzerland, that the lack of drinking water and hygiene measures in the refuge areas of these displaced populations contributed to the increase in cases of these diseases in several states in Sudan.

"People living in the states of Darfur, Kordofan, Khartoum and Al Gezira are basically isolated from any humanitarian assistance," she added.

Balkhy expressed particular concern about the situation in the city of Al Fasher, the last stronghold of the Sudanese army in Darfur, where around 800,000 people have little access to food and healthcare.

As in other areas of the region affected by the conflict, Balkhy denounced frequent attacks by the warring parties on health facilities, with 82 attacks since the start of hostilities in April 2023, resulting in 54 deaths.

Since April 2023, a war has pitted the Sudanese army, led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane, against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of his former deputy, General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo.

Both parties have been accused of war crimes in this conflict, which caused tens of thousands of deaths and displaced more than ten million people, according to the United Nations.

While the war continues unabated, the distribution of humanitarian aid faces "administrative, security and logistical obstacles", said the WHO representative in Sudan, Shible Sahbani.

Despite the obstacles, "WHO distributed 510 tons of medicines and aid equipment between January and July," he said, adding that "two trucks entered North Darfur last week from Chad and seven trucks are on their way to Darfur from Port of Sudan".

According to Sahbani, based on testimonies from refugees he met in Chad, hunger is currently the main reason why Sudanese are fleeing their country.

Some 25.6 million people, more than half the population, face "acute food insecurity" in Sudan, according to a UN-backed report from late June.

Humanitarian agencies have warned that it is only the difficulty of accessing data on the ground that prevents famine from being officially declared in Sudan.

The army and RSF were accused of obstructing humanitarian aid and almost destroying an already fragile health system.