Violence, displacements overwhelm healthcare system in Sudan’s El-Fasher: UN

United Nations:  Violence and waves of displacements have overwhelmed the fragile healthcare system in El-Fasher, the capital of Sudan’s North Darfur state, UN humanitarians said.

“More than 200 health facilities in El Fasher are not functioning, and there are severe shortages of medical staff, essential medicines and life-saving supplies,” said the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Humanitarian partners have been trying to provide medical supplies, but their efforts to deliver continue to be impeded by insecurity and access constraints, the office said.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) reported that more than 70 per cent of hospitals and health facilities across areas impacted by the hostilities in Sudan are no longer operational, leaving millions without healthcare.

“Sudan’s health system has also come under relentless attack,” WHO said. “As of mid-February, WHO recorded nearly 150 attacks on health care in Sudan since the war there began, but the real figure could be far higher.”

OCHA appealed to the parties involved in the conflict to ensure safe, sustained, and timely humanitarian access to reach people needing life-saving support. Civilians must be protected, and the essential needs for their survival must be met, Xinhua news agency reported.

As the civil war enters its second year, Sudan’s two warring factions remain locked in a deadly power struggle. Since the conflict began on April 15, 2023, almost 15,000 people have been killed, and more than 8.2 million have been displaced, giving rise to the worst displacement crisis in the world.

Nearly 2 million displaced Sudanese have fled to unstable areas in Chad, Ethiopia, and South Sudan, overrunning refugee camps and prompting concerns that Sudanese refugees could soon attempt to enter Europe.

The UN continues to plead for more support as more than 25 million need humanitarian assistance, and deteriorating food security risks are triggering the “world’s largest hunger crisis.”

Meanwhile, mediation efforts have failed to produce results as the leaders of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) refuse to halt their violence, and regional and international actors have taken sides in the war.

–IANS