Sudan faces deadly cholera outbreak amid conflict

At least 70 people have died from cholera, and more than 2,200 have been infected in southern Sudan over the past week, Save the Children, a London-headquartered nongovernmental organization, said on Thursday.

This comes even as the entire country faces acute hunger and displacement due to the ongoing conflict that started in April 2023.

Save the Children said health facilities in Kosti, the capital of White Nile state, are overwhelmed by the increasing number of patients, with many sleeping on bare ground due to overcrowded wards.

Additionally, families have been forced by the situation to bring beds from home for patients admitted to the hospital's courtyard.

The cholera outbreak has been attributed to the shutdown of Kosti's main water station after a drone attack on the Um Dabakir electricity station cut off the clean water supply to the city and forced residents to consume contaminated water.

White Nile state declared its first case of cholera on Feb 20 with cases rapidly increasing since then.

The current outbreak is the latest in a series of back-to-back outbreaks, with more than 53,700 cases and over 1,400 deaths having been recorded since the initial outbreak in August last year.

Mohamed Abdiladif, the country director for Save the Children in Sudan, said children in the country are caught in an endless cycle of violence, disease and hunger, with devastating impact.

Abdiladif said more concerning is the fact that the majority of the people fighting for their lives in White Nile had just returned home after a relatively calm period to restart their lives.

"Save the Children is calling on the warring parties to stop reckless attacks on critical civilian infrastructure, including dams supplying clean water to families and children in need," he said.

The organization said at least 80 percent of hospitals in Sudan are now out of service, and those operational lack the most basic medical supplies.

According to the United Nations, 12 million people have been displaced and 24.6 million face acute hunger nationwide.

"Nearly two years of relentless conflict in Sudan have inflicted immense suffering and turned parts of the country into a hellscape," said Edem Wosornu, director of operations and advocacy division at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

edithmutethya@chinadaily.com.cn