It is a humanitarian crisis: According to the WHO, more than 12,000 people have died in Sudan since the civil war began eight months ago – many because of a lack of medical care. Diseases are spreading more and more.
The army in Sudan has been fighting the paramilitary “Rapid Support Forces” for almost eight months. Since then, more than 12,000 people have died, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). More than 33,000 people have been injured in fighting, said the WHO representative in Sudan, Mohammad Taufiq Mashal. The country is in a deep humanitarian crisis.
Mashal was referring to data from the nonprofit Acled, which collects data on the locations, participants and victims of conflicts around the world. 6.8 million of the 25 million inhabitants were driven out of their houses and apartments. Many have sought refuge within the country itself, while others have fled to neighboring countries.
Medical care in many places collapsed
Many people died because medical care partially collapsed. They would not be able to reach hospitals with injuries or acute illnesses and would not have access to vital medicines for things like cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure and many other diseases. Infectious diseases could hardly be treated anymore.
Cholera is now spreading in nine states of the country, including in larger cities. Measles is also on the rise. Pregnant women would not be able to reach maternity hospitals if birth complications became apparent. There is also a lack of medical care for sick children, and many are now malnourished.
Staff continue to work without pay
The WHO says it supports 21 mobile clinics, treatment centers for cholera and malnutrition. Everything is being done with partners to distribute medical supplies despite the devastating security situation. Many healthcare workers continued to work despite not being paid for months. According to data from the UN emergency relief office OCHA, only 39 percent of the $2.5 billion (2.3 billion euros) needed for humanitarian aid in Sudan has been paid in by donor countries this year.
In Sudan, a power struggle between the regular army and the paramilitary “Rapid Support Forces” (RSF) escalated on April 15th. Since then there has been fighting in many parts of the country, especially in the capital Khartoum and the western Darfur region.