Sudan city faces cholera outbreak of more than 400 cases
Jihadists killed dozens of civilians according to Burkinabe officials
Sudanese health authorities on February 20th confirmed more than 400 cholera cases in the city of Kosti, southern Sudan, according to The New Arab and agencies.
The health ministry in White Nile state attributed the outbreak to water shortages caused by power outages. Eyewitnesses told AFP on February 16th that drones had hit the Um Dabakar power station, which supplies Kosti, 170 miles south of Khartoum.
An engineer told AFP that “the station has stopped working.”
The health ministry on February 20th reported that it had mobilised 100 medical personnel and given over 6,000 intravenous solutions. Cholera can spread through contaminated food and water and leads to extreme diarrhoea, vomiting and muscle cramps.
Sudan’s government had already declared a cholera epidemic last year, with 24,609 cases and 699 deaths reported by October.
Since April 2023, Sudan has seen a war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The conflict has killed tens of thousands, displaced more than 12 million people, and formed the biggest food insecurity and displacement crisis, on a national scale.
African Union officials on February 11th said that Sudan’s civil war is the “worst humanitarian crisis in the world” according to The New Arab and agencies.
Taking to X, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, the chairperson of the AU High Level Panel on Sudan (HLP-Sudan), said: “Children and women are continually abused, and the elderly and sick lack medical assistance…[the war]  has hampered access to humanitarian relief, led to shortage of food and aggravated hunger,” according to Al Jazeera.
The International Committee of the Red Cross warned in January of a “disturbing pattern of attacks on critical civilian infrastructure” that has disrupted access to electricity and clean water for millions.
White Nile state witnessed further violence last week when the RSF carried out a three-day assault on villages north of Kosti. Sudan’s Emergency Lawyers network reported that over 200 people were killed, while the army-backed government reported the toll to be 433.
The United Nations Agency for Migration said on February 20th that more than 6,500 families were uprooted in the first two days of the attack near Al-Qutaina.
Sudan’s healthcare system has collapsed under the strain of war, with 80% of health facilities in conflict-hit areas left with no choice but to close.
The New Arab and agencies, Al Jazeera
Want to chase the pulse of North Africa?
Subscribe to receive our FREE weekly PDF magazine
