It is a terrible observation: at least 498 children “and probably hundreds more” have died of hunger in four months of war in Sudan, reports the NGO Save the Children on Tuesday.
We knew the country was in a chaotic situation, it’s worse than that: already before the war, one inhabitant out of three suffered from hunger. But since the beginning of the war, on April 15, due to the rivalry between two generals, the situation has deteriorated further: “We would never have imagined seeing so many children dying of hunger, but this is the news reality of Sudan,” said Arif Noor, director of Save the Children in Sudan, in a statement. As the NGO could no longer operate in the midst of the fighting, it had to stop treating “31,000 children suffering from malnutrition”. In May, the factory that produced 60% of nutritional treatments for children was destroyed.
The war – which could last for years according to experts – between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (FSR, paramilitary) has caused around 5,000 deaths since April 15, according to a report by the NGO Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (Acled). The conflict has resulted in daily fighting in the streets of Khartoum, a resumption of attacks targeting ethnic groups in Darfur, a western region the size of France where a quarter of the estimated 48 million Sudanese live, and the displacement of more than 4 millions of people. According to Unicef, there are also “an alarming number of reports that boys and girls are being recruited by armed groups”.
Efforts led by Saudi Arabia and the United States to broker a ceasefire have stalled and aid agencies are struggling to deliver relief due to insecurity, looting and bureaucratic obstacles. The international community is struggling to finance aid for displaced persons, refugees, injured and other victims of sexual violence, while international justice is concerned about “war crimes”.
On Tuesday, the violence continued, mainly in Khartoum and Darfur. There, the fighting is concentrated in Nyala, capital of South Darfur, where since August 11 they have made “60 dead, 250 injured and 50,000 displaced”, according to the UN. Trucks loaded with humanitarian aid are blocked. The Turkish hospital, the only one still functioning in Nyala, said it was overwhelmed by the influx of wounded.