It has now been 842 days since the conflict between the troops of the military government and their former allies who have become rivals in the paramilitary support forces broke out in Sudan, transforming the country into the largest humanitarian crisis in the world.
Heavy fighting continues in the state of Darfur du Nord, with multiple civilian victims reported in recent days – especially during the clashes of the state capital, El Fasher, on August 1 and 2 – after previous violence between armed groups near the Abu Shouk camp for displaced people, which currently welcome 25,000 residents.
Famine threat
One year after confirmation of famine in the Zamzam camp on the outskirts of El Fasher, the city remains besieged, without any delivery of food aid entering by the road, leaving residents of the regional capital in the face of famine.
Food prices such as sorghum and wheat are more than four times higher than elsewhere in the country, while many families are unable to afford even the most basic items.
“Limited cash assistance continues, but it is far from sufficient to meet growing needs,” said UN spokesperson Farhan Haq, during the daily briefing in New York.
The threat of continuous cholera
Meanwhile, cholera continues to spread in Darfur, with nearly 1,200 cases reported – around 300 children – in the locality of Tawila since the end of June.
In southern Darfur, the health authorities have reported more than 1,100 suspect cases and 64 deaths since the end of May, because “shortages of medical supplies, drinking water and sanitation seriously hinder humanitarian response,” said Mr. Haq.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) warns that the life of more than 640,000 under five presents an increased risk of violence, illness and hunger in the region.
Compound crisis
In the state of Blue Nile, Ed Damazine’s floods moved more than 100 people and destroyed at least 200 tents at the Al-Karama camp on August 1, further aggravating the challenges facing the people who fled their homes due to conflicts.
Meanwhile, in the state of Khartoum, the presence of fatal terrestrial mines in several places adds a new dangerous layer with threats already confronted daily by civilians.
As OCHA Operations DirectorEdem Wosornu, visit Sudan this week to assess the humanitarian situation, the agency called for sustained and widened humanitarian access as well as a greater international support for the most vulnerable.
Publicado anteriormente en Almouwatin.
