Latest cholera outbreak in Sudan kills 120 so far

Sudan is suffering from another cholera outbreak, with 120 people killed reports Asharq Al-Awsat and agencies on July 2^nd.

On July 1st, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said since May 2026 there have been 1,102 suspected cases of cholera in Sudan.

This current wave has arrived only two months after the end of Sudan’s last outbreak and marks the third wave in three years. 3,500 people died in the previous wave with over 124,000 becoming infected between July 2024 and March 2026.

Dr Shible Sahbani, WHO’s Sudan Chief  said cholera used to appear in Sudan “in a cyclic manner every three years” but now outbreaks are constant “due to the conflict, constraints in access and limited supplies”.

The ongoing conflict between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have killed nearly 200,000 people and reduced hospital services, aid workers estimate.

Sahbani has highlighted the dire consequences of the war on Sudan’s medical services. He said “Forty percent of health facilities are non-functional at all, and the remaining almost 60 percent are only partially functioning, meaning they are providing only a few services, or not enough to patients in the area”.

West Kordofan, declared by the Sudanese government as the location of the latest cholera outbreak is a crucial state with both sides fighting to control it.

Due to the lack of functioning medical facilities, cholera seems to be spreading through the region, with the WHO reporting 3 deaths and a suspected 300 cases in North Kordofan.

Ongoing drone strikes and ground assaults from both sides make sending aid to the Kordofan region especially dangerous. United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said “access to lifesaving drinking water and electricity” is already being disrupted by drone strikes on power stations in El-Obeid, North Kordofan’s capital.

According to the UN, the RSF has plans for a large ground assault on El-Obeid  in the near future.

Asharq Al-Awsat plus agencies, Maghrebi.org