Throughout Sudan, and particularly in the states of Khartoum, Darfur, North Kordofan and Gadarif, our teams are facing serious problems. Our facilities in Nyala, South Darfur were searched, including one of our warehouses. In Khartoum, most teams are pinned down by heavy fighting and unable to enter warehouses to deliver vital medical supplies to hospitals. Even the circulation of ambulances is prevented. They are not allowed to go through to take the bodies of the dead off the street or take the wounded to the hospital.
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In Khartoum and other cities where fighting is fiercest, we have received reports of overcrowded and closed hospitals, running out of supplies, water, electricity and fuel for generators. The staff at these medical centers have been working tirelessly and are exhausted since the violence broke out. Many have spent countless hours on standby to provide essential care in extremely difficult circumstances, despite the consequences of the situation for themselves and their families. On the other hand, due to intense fighting and insecurity, off-duty medical personnel are unable to reach hospitals to provide life-saving assistance.
Most of the wounded we see are civilians caught in the crossfire, including many children.
We are ready to provide supplies and medical staff to large health centers in need, but it is too dangerous to move around Khartoum and other cities. We call on the parties to the conflict to ensure the safety of medical staff and patients so that they can access health centers without fear for their lives. We also ask you to ensure the protection of all means and health facilities, including hospitals, clinics, camps and ambulances. These media and institutions should never be a target.
Most of the wounded we see at Al Fasher are civilians caught in the crossfire, including many children. They are suffering serious injuries and there was no surgical capacity at the hospital as of Saturday afternoon. All other North Darfur hospitals have been forced to close due to their proximity to the battlefield or the inability of staff to reach the facility due to the violence. Because we had nowhere to refer the most critical patients, 11 people died from their injuries in the first 48 hours. Although we have some surgical capacity now, in the hospital we only have 38 beds and many patients. There is not enough space for them, and many lie on the floors of rooms and corridors.
Blood for transfusions is running out. The fuel for the generator is also running out. It is important to mention that without these vital supplies, more lives will be lost.
At this point, the hospital is rapidly running out of material resources to treat the survivors. Blood for transfusions is running out. The fuel for the generator is also running out. It is important to mention that without these vital supplies, more lives will be lost. We have received a list of surgical items urgently needed by the surgical team and are searching for a safe corridor to take them to the hospital. The airport has been closed since Saturday and urgently needs to be reopened so that we can bring more medical supplies and, if possible, a surgical team from MSF to support the surgeons already working.
I would also like to recall that after the military coup in 2021, most of the international aid to Sudan was frozen and the ensuing economic crisis has led to an increase in the cost of living for the population and food insecurity. Hospitals were already struggling to operate due to the lack of medical supplies and brain drain. The Sudanese health system has been on the brink of collapse for decades, the economic and political crisis has brought it to a point of no return and recent events are turning the country’s precarious humanitarian situation of a decade continue to tighten already peaked.
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