At least 239 children have died in western Sudan since January: Group
Child deaths have mounted in El Fasher amid RSF siege and humanitarian collapse, says Sudan Doctors Network
KHARTOUM, Sudan
At least 239 children have died in western Sudan since January due to a lack of sufficient food and medicine, the Sudan Doctors Network said Sunday.
The civilian medical organization said in a statement that its team documented child deaths from malnutrition and critical shortages of food and medical supplies in the city of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, between January and June.
It warned of escalating hunger and the continued targeting of children’s nutrition warehouses in El Fasher, which remains under siege by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) group.
“The Network deeply regrets the international community’s continued neglect of Darfur’s children, who have endured more than a year under siege,” the statement said, adding that El Fasher and the surrounding camps in North Darfur state are facing an almost total absence of food and medical supplies, along with unaffordable prices for basic necessities.
It issued an urgent appeal to save the remaining civilians in El Fasher, who it said are under constant siege and bombardment.
It also urged regional and international organizations “to put pressure on the Rapid Support Forces to accept and implement the truce proposed by the UN Secretary-General.”
“Immediate action is needed to open humanitarian corridors, allow the delivery of emergency aid and medical supplies, and lift the siege that has gripped El Fasher for over a year,” the statement added.
Fighting between the Sudanese army and the RSF has rocked El Fasher since May 10, despite international warnings about the battle in the city, which serves as the main hub for humanitarian operations across the Darfur region’s five states.
Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the chairman of Sudan’s Sovereign Council, on Friday approved a seven-day humanitarian ceasefire in El-Fasher.
The decision came following a phone call from UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, according to a statement from the Sovereign Council.
Guterres requested the implementation of a week-long truce in the besieged city of El-Fasher to allow humanitarian aid to reach those in need.
The Sovereign Council’s statement did not specify when the ceasefire would begin.
The RSF has not issued any immediate comment.
The RSF and the army have been locked in a brutal power struggle since April 2023, resulting in thousands of deaths and pushing Sudan into one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
