CAIRO (AP) — Cholera is spreading rapidly in Darfur, killing 40 people and infecting over 2,300 over the past week alone due to water shortages and a collapsed healthcare system have left communities vulnerable amid the ongoing war in Sudan, Doctors Without Borders said in a report Thursday.
The group, also known as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), said the outbreak was the worst the North African country has seen in years.
As of Monday, a total of 99,700 suspected cases and over 2,470 related deaths have been reported in Sudan since the cholera outbreak began in July 2024, according to MSF.
While some vaccination campaigns that kicked off at the time managed to contain the disease, more people have been infected over the past few months due to poor hygiene measures and new waves of people being displaced amid intensified fighting in the Darfur and Kordofan regions.
The civil war erupted in April 2023 in Khartoum before spreading across the country. The fighting between the Sudanese military, its allies, and its rival paramilitary the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has killed over 40,000 people, displaced as many as 12 million, caused disease outbreaks, and pushed many to the brink of famine.
The World Health Organization describes cholera as a “disease of poverty” because it spreads where there is poor sanitation and a lack of clean water. The diarrheal disease is caused when people eat food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. It is easily treatable with rehydration solutions and antibiotics, but in severe cases the disease can kill within hours if left untreated.
“The situation is most extreme in Tawila, North Darfur state, where 380,000 people have fled to escape ongoing fighting around the city of El Fasher, according to the United Nations,” MSF said Thursday.
The medical group added that Tawila Hospital was overwhelmed by some 400 cholera patients earlier this month, when it only had the capacity for 130 people. Many had to be treated on the floor.
North Darfur’s capital city of el-Fasher and its surrounding areas have seen repeated waves of violence recently. On Monday, the RSF attacked the famine-stricken displacement camp of Abu Shouk outside the city, killing 40 people and injuring at least 19 people.
On Monday, the RSF denied targeting civilians in el-Fasher, but didn’t mention attacks in Abu Shouk camp in a statement on its Telegram channel. The paramilitary accused Islamic Movement militias and “mercenaries of the armed movements” of endangering the lives of civilians and using them as “human shields in a desperate attempt to hinder” forces’ advancements.
“The Rapid Support Forces reaffirms its commitment to continuing to open safe corridors for the departure of civilians from El Fasher to other, safer areas,” the group added.
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