Photo of general view of settlement in Zamzam camp for Internally Displaced People (IDP), North Darfur, Sudan, April 3, 2014 by Albert Gonzalez Farran, UNAMID.
Sudan: War Crisis Continues
Civilians in Sudan face unprecedented hunger and displacement as the United States cuts humanitarian assistance.
On June 21, forty people were killed in an attack on Al-Mujlad Hospital in West Kordofan state, Sudan. The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) accused the Sudanese army of attacking the hospital; the Sudanese army has not responded to accusations.
The Sudan Doctors Network, along with the Emergency Lawyers group, blamed the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) for the attack. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), many of the victims were children and medical personnel. The Al-Mujlad Hospital was the only functioning healthcare facility in the area and had a strong focus on civilian care, the Sudan Doctors Network said.
A total of 24.6 million people in Sudan (around half the population) are acutely food insecure, the WHO has said, while 637,000 (the highest anywhere in the world) face catastrophic levels of hunger. The conditions for children continue to worsen, with 1 in 3 children facing acute malnutrition – above the 20 percent threshold constituting famine.
The recent cuts to foreign aid by the United States have only heightened scarcity and uncertainty – not just in Sudan but in neighboring countries that host Sudanese refugees. The World Food Programme on June 30 warned that millions of Sudanese refugees who have fled to neighboring countries face deeper hunger and malnutrition as critical funding shortages force drastic cuts to food assistance.
On June 27, Sudan’s military announced it has agreed to a UN proposal for a weeklong ceasefire in El Fasher, the capital city of North Darfur in the southwestern part of the country, to facilitate UN aid efforts to the area. At the time of publication of this article, it is unknown whether the RSF would agree and comply with the temporary ceasefire.
Faith in action: Take three actions for Sudan https://mogc.me/act-sudan/