WHO warns of rising attacks on Sudan hospitals

Hospitals and other healthcare facilities in war-torn Sudan are facing increased attacks, a World Health Organization (WHO) official said on Wednesday as fighting between the army and paramilitaries rages on.

Since the start of the war in April 2023, the WHO has recorded 82 attacks on healthcare facilities, “including 17 in the last six weeks alone,” said Hanan Balkhy, the WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean regional director.

Meanwhile, the country is suffering from the “spread of diseases such as cholera, malaria and meningitis,” she warned during a video conference.

The conflict between the regular army under Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, led by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, has left tens of thousands dead and displaced more than ten million people, according to the United Nations.

With the war showing no signs of abating, the delivery of humanitarian aid faces “administrative, security and logistical obstacles,” said Shible Sahbani, the WHO’s representative in Sudan.

Despite the challenges, “the WHO distributed 510 tons of medicines and aid materials between January and July,” he added, saying that two trucks entered North Darfur last week from Chad and seven trucks are en route to Darfur from Port Sudan.

Sahbani said hunger is the main factor driving Sudanese to flee the country, referring to testimonies from asylum-seekers in neighboring Chad.

A recent UN-backed report said nearly 26 million people, or slightly more than half of the population, were facing high levels of “acute food insecurity.”

Humanitarian agencies say that the difficulty of obtaining data on the ground has prevented famine from being officially declared in Sudan.

Both the army and the RSF have been accused of obstructing humanitarian aid and nearly destroying Sudan’s already fragile healthcare system.