Healthcare in Sudan ‘hanging by a thread,’ warns UN health agency

In one particularly appalling attack, a hospital was struck last Friday alongside residential areas and a livestock market in North Darfur state that killed or injured at least 97 civilians.

Attacks against medical facilities, personnel and supplies, which violate international human law and have left healthcare system in Sudan “hanging by a thread”, the UN agency warned.

“Hospitals, health facilities, ambulances and other health assets are a lifeline to Sudan’s people, who endure relentless fighting and frequent displacement due to the ongoing war,” it said in a statement.

“Yet their tenacity and dedication are rewarded with bombardment, harassment, intimidation, injury and death.”

Protect healthcare

WHO has documented 88 attacks on healthcare since the outbreak of the war last April between rival militaries – the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The UN agency underscored the obligations of parties to the conflict, under international humanitarian law, to ensure that healthcare, as well as health and medical supplies and personnel are protected from any harm.

“We call for all health workers, patients and facilities to be protected at all times,” it said, underscoring the need for guns to fall silent to ensure the health system can be rebuilt.

The conflict has resulted in over 18,800 deaths and 33,000 injuries, with more than 10 million people displaced, including five million children. Sudan is also experiencing unprecedented levels of food insecurity, with 25.6 million people, over half the population, facing acute hunger.

Cases rising

The agency further reported that said less than 25 per cent of health facilities in provinces affected by the fighting are functional, while and only 45 per cent are functional in other regions.

UN Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, Toby Harward, outlined the impact on civilians, in particular children.

Vulnerable people dying in hard-to-reach places when they are unable to access functional hospitals and clinics, he said from Chad, having returned recently from the Darfur region, which has seen the worst of the fighting.

Many children are displaying coughs, cold and other symptoms of illness, including influenza (flu), he told journalist in New York via video link, and that last week alone 77 children were admitted to various hospitals for acute malnutrition and medical complications.

“These cases…are rising weekly,” he added.