September 1
PEOPLE OF OMDURMAN FACING DIRE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS. Hunger,
disease and environmental degradation are taking a heavy toll on the population, while
the international community struggles to bring an end to the conflict. The fear of death
from starvation or disease is compounded by the deteriorating environmental situation.
Bombing, the presence of unburied bodies and destruction of water stations have created
a breeding ground for disease. The health system…. is unable to cope with the surge in
cases. 80% of health facilities have lost their capacity to function, and most in conflict
zones are completely out of service. In areas not directly affected by the fighting, health
facilities are overwhelmed. Doctors and paramedics, many volunteers from the local
community, face overcrowding and even assault. In Omdurman, the spread of epidemic
diseases, including watery diarrhoea and cholera, is a major concern. In Karari last
month, 165 cases of intestinal diarrhoea were reported. The people of Omdurman, like
millions of other Sudanese, are caught in a desperate struggle for survival. Eye
infections are surging, with health centres reporting 40-50 cases daily. Many more are
likely going untreated, resorting to traditional remedies due to a lack of access to
medical care and affordable medication. Eye drops and tetracycline ointment, in short
supply, are increasingly expensive, with prices reaching SDG8,000.
The collapse of the health sector, coupled with a shortage of clean water and
overflowing sewage, is creating a perfect storm for disease outbreaks. Cholera,
dysentery and eye infections are spreading rapidly, while experts warn of the potential
for even more serious diseases like dengue fever. “The issue is not only about medicines
but also about work on the ground,” said a primary health care expert, stressing the
urgent need for cleaning and pest control efforts. In Karari, cases of scabies and
monkeypox have been reported, raising concerns about the potential for further spread.
These diseases, often prevalent in neighbouring countries, can easily cross borders in the
absence of effective awareness campaigns. The expert criticised the Min of Health for its
lack of transparency and proactive response. “There is a blackout on what is happening,
and the disease is revealed after it spreads.”
The situation in Omdurman underscores the urgent need for a comprehensive
response to the health crisis Medical supplies, sanitation efforts and public health
campaigns are all critical to preventing further suffering and loss of life. In densely
populated Um Badda where most men work as labourers and women sell food and tea to
support their families, night blindness and diarrhoea have become the most common
ailments. Residents, many large families without the means to flee, have to stay despite
the daily aerial bombardment and violence. Karari under the control of the RSF faces
particularly dire conditions, with citizens subjected to looting, arrests and various forms
of abuse. The only Tawari Centre serving the Um Badda neighbourhoods 43, 51, and
Wad El Bashir, was once a centre for emergency cases referring critical cases to El Nau
Hosp. Now, with a staff of mostly volunteer medical assistants, nurses and paramedics,
it’s struggling to cope with a surge in disease. More recently, night blindness and leg
weakness, likely due to vitamin deficiency, have become a major concern. The centre
lacks basic medications like eye drops and tetracycline ointment, forcing residents to
rely on traditional remedies or purchase expensive drugs they can’t afford. Due to the
security situation, the centre operates for limited hours, hindering access to care and
endangering the lives of many. The people of Um Badda, trapped in a war zone with
limited resources and access to healthcare, are facing a growing health crisis. Dabanga
UN DEP SECY-GEN AMINA MOHAMMED CALLED ON INTERNATIONAL
COMMUNITY TO ADDRESS THE CRISES IN SUDAN and E Africa….
Mohammed…announced a $5m allocation from the UN Central Emergency Response
Fund as part of a rapid response towards supporting flood recovery efforts. Chad hosts
1.1 million refugees, many escaping violence in Sudan. …the war has also triggered
colossal suffering within Sudan’s borders. “The humanitarian task that we have in Sudan
has been very big. …we have been consistently supporting the government to try to
address the crisis. The suffering of the people in this country is one of the worst crises in
the world today.” Chad and neighbouring Sudan have been grappling with multiple
crises. Discussions between the deputy chief and local authorities in Chad centred on
the complex challenges facing the country, including regional dynamics and key risks,
and highlighted “the urgent need for global solidarity.” Mohammed called for
“maximum solidarity and resources” to ensure the humanitarian response fulfills its
mandate and supports the people of the region, urging parties “to invest more in saving
lives and livelihoods”. Mohammed observed the humanitarian corridor operation at
newly opened Adré crossing point into Sudan and engaged with refugee representatives,
women, youth and community leaders. “This crossing is a vital lifeline for aid delivery
to millions in Sudan and must remain open and accessible to facilitate large-scale
humanitarian assistance while ensuring the safety of aid workers.” The Adré crossing is
the most effective and shortest route to deliver humanitarian assistance into Sudan – and
particularly the Darfur region – at the scale and speed required to respond to the
immense hunger crisis. “What we have to do is to match the openings of these borders
with the aid that goes in, and that means resources, and so we need those resources, and
we need them now.” When visiting Sudan earlier this week, Mohammed met with the
country’s President and cabinet members, who agreed that the Jeddah peace process
must be implemented swiftly. …“there is consensus there, and there is no reason why
that cannot be moved forward. We have impending crisis around famine. We are not
getting medical supplies in where there are health crises. What we have done is to sit
down with the humanitarian aid commission, and then we have had discussions on how,
first of all, not to stop any of the aid that is available right now going in.”
WHO REPORTED CHOLERA IN 3 SUDANESE STATES Gedaref, Khartoum and S
Kordofan with suspected cases in El Gezira and Kassala….cholera is spreading rapidly
due to unsafe water, poor sanitation, displacement and a weakened health system. 3.1m
people are at risk of contracting cholera by the end of the year. WHO raised concerns
about the rise of malaria and dengue fever, as well as the lack of treatment for chronic
diseases like diabetes and heart disease. The war’s impact on the health sector and
primary care is dire, with the lack of clean water and water treatment posing a
significant threat to public health. Doctors Without Borders reports civilians are
suffering horrific violence, with physical and psychological injuries mounting due to the
collapsed health system and inadequate international aid. Access to medical care and
life-saving medicines is severely limited, with attacks on health workers, looting of
supplies and a general disregard for human life and international humanitarian law.
Citizens in conflict zones and shelters recount harrowing stories of violence, forced
displacement, looting, and robbery. The humanitarian crisis in Sudan continues to
deepen, with millions facing a dire situation. #StandWithSudan/Sudan Media Forum
August 29
MIN OF HEALTH CONFIRMED 8 DEATHS, 128 NEW CASES OF CHOLERA IN
KASSALA AND EL GEDAREF. The number of infections in Kassala reached 87 cases,
and El Gedaref….the cumulative number of cases in Kassala has risen to more than 700,
there are more than 70 cases in the isolation ward in Kassala City, with deaths
continuing in the ward. Volunteers in the Tawayit area confirmed to Radio Dabanga that
15 deaths and 300 cases were recorded. They pointed to a severe shortage of medicines
and called on various health authorities to intervene urgently and provide the necessary
medicines. In Wad El Hilu, the number of cases of infection and death due to cholera has
increased alarmingly as its spread has expanded to include all villages and cities in the
locality. The sources explained that the cholera vaccine was distributed in 3 towns,
where the quantities ran out before reaching most areas of the locality. The Min of
Health in Northern State announced 260 cases of bacterial dermatitis. …it is a highly
contagious and spreading disease. Dr Mohammed Awad Eljaid disclosed that federal
teams are being dispatched to Khashm El Girba and Wad El Helew, with plans to send a
team to El Gedaref.
August 24
AL BURHAN SAID HIS GOVERNMENT WOULD NOT JOIN PEACE TALKS IN
SWITZERLAND, saying the military would “fight for 100 years” if necessary to defeat
the RSF. Burhan told reporters that the talks aim to “whitewash” the RSF and countries
that support the paramilitaries. “We will not put down our weapons as the rebellion
continues. We will not co-exist with the rebels and we will not forgive them.” US
opened talks in Switzerland which concluded Fri, aimed at easing human suffering and
achieving a lasting ceasefire. Saudi Arabia, Egypt and UAE acted as mediators which
aimed to secure more aid. While an RSF delegation showed up, the SAF were unhappy
with the format and did not attend. But they were in telephone contact with the
mediators. “Though we were in consistent communication with SAF virtually, we regret
their decision not to be present, and we believe that limited our ability to make more
substantial progress towards key issues, particularly a national cessation of hostilities,”
the mediators said. Last week, the warring parties agreed to improve access for
humanitarian aid, with 2 routes identified to ensure the flow of resources to civilians.
One was the Adre border crossing with Chad, which leads into the Darfur region. The
other was from Pt Sudan on the Red Sea.
US envoy Perriello….acknowledged that progress had been slow due to the
absence of the SAF — and the results were inadequate to address the scale of the
humanitarian crisis. Moreover, overlapping efforts in pursuit of a ceasefire, including
Saudi- and US-led talks in Jeddah, have not eased the fighting. “We do believe that the
national cessation of hostilities is possible. We know that that is going to take a great
deal of work,” Cameron Hudson, Center for Strategic & Intl Studies in Washington,
said the international community has failed to exert the necessary pressure to ensure
decisive action in Sudan: “These are 2 armies that are caught in a pitched, existential
battle. The last thing they’re interested in is respecting agreements that they don’t see
themselves as parties to. So I think the only thing that’s going to change their outlook is
if we bring real pressure to bear — if there are consequences for not showing up in
Geneva.”
August 23
FOR THE 2ND CONSECUTIVE YEAR SUDAN IS IN THE GRIP OF CHOLERA
OUTBREAK…as rains fall in areas crammed with those fleeing the country’s 16-month-
old war. Since 22 July, when the current wave began, 658 cases have been recorded
across 5 states. With much of the country’s health infrastructure collapsed or destroyed
and staffing thinned by displacement, 4.3% of cases resulted in deaths, a high rate
compared to other outbreaks. 200,000 are at high risk of falling ill. The country is
dealing with 5 concurrent disease outbreaks, include dengue fever and measles.
RSF has advanced across swathes of Sudan, where people have been cut off from
aid as the army has withheld access and RSF soldiers loot supplies and hospitals. Efforts
to deliver aid to western Darfur have been complicated by rains. …there is a famine in
Zamzam Camp, an area flooded in the rains and highly susceptible to cholera.
12,000 cases and 350 deaths were registered in the previous cholera wave Oct 2023 –
May 2024. In Gedaref, a Reuters reporter filmed pools of water attracting insects and
large ponds of stagnant rain water mixing with refuse. A local official said the vast
majority of diseases were caused by insects, poor water quality and sewage. Many
people fleeing raids by the RSF shelter in crowded, makeshift displacement centres,
where lavatories overflowed as heavier-than-usual rains continue to fall. Cholera is
transmitted from food and water contaminated with infected faeces and thrives in such
conditions. Khartoum and Gezira, largely controlled by the RSF, had also seen cholera
cases, while Kordofan and Darfur could likely see outbreaks. “The challenge is getting
supplies to the areas we need them. Due to the rainy season many roads are not usable
now, but also there are security constraints and bureaucratic constraints.” Intl
Coordinated Group for vaccine allocation approved delivery of 455,000 cholera vaccine
doses, some “good news in the middle of this horrible crisis”. … the need in Sudan far
outweighed the aid effort, particularly as the UN’s humanitarian appeal is only about 1/3
funded. Middle East Monitor
August 11
MOUNTAIN STRONGHOLD OF AN ELUSIVE REBEL MOVEMENT. Kadugli once
served as a staging ground for a slow ethnic slaughter as the Sudanese regime tried to
wipe out rebels in the surrounding mountains. Villagers paid the price instead, as entire
settlements were destroyed by barrel bombs. But the dictatorship fell in 2019, and the
generals who seized power turned against each other….the rebels were on the offensive.
SPLM, fighting Sudan’s government since 1983…is among the few rebel groups fighting
for a Western-style democracy: it has a Constitution and calls for a secular state, though
it does so while pointing a rifle. SPLM’s stronghold is the Nuba Mtns that remain one of
the world’s most isolated places. SPLM has been capturing territory at a steady pace
during the civil war liberating it. Kadugli is their next major target. Taking Kadugli
could be the first step in realizing their vision for the nation they hope will emerge.
For generations, Sudan has been torn by a bitter divide between its north, which
identifies as Arab and Muslim, and its south, which is ethnically Black and religiously
mixed with a large Christian population. Khartoum was founded as a slaving town,
from which Sudan’s Arab population preyed for years on its Black one. Many Africans
fled the slavers and came to the Nuba Mtns. In 1983 a group of Black leaders formed
SPLA, the armed faction of SPLM. A civil war lasted 2 decades. In 2005, the sides
reached a peace agreement that led to the country being split: A largely Arab state
would keep Sudan’s name and capital, and the mostly Black country So Sudan would
be in Juba. But the Nuba Mtns on the dividing line were given to the north. Al-Bashir
tried to root out SPLM-N with airstrikes. Generations of guerrillas fought from rugged
lands but few have claimed the prize the SPLM has— a state within a state where they
are the law. In Kauda, rebels run their own court system with volunteer judges deciding
everything from dowry disputes to murder cases. A rebel-run school system teaches
classes in English, a rebuff to Khartoum’s education system which teaches in Arabic,
and issues driver’s licenses and birth certificates. They call the territory New Sudan.
Rania Wanza, 36, SPLM information secretary….said war was not new for her
people; they had been fighting successive Arab dictators since the 80s. What was
different this time was that Khartoum had fallen. Throughout her life, Sudan’s leaders
sent armed militias to terrorize ethnic groups on the country’s fringes, Darfur in the
2000s or the Nuba Mtns in the 2010s: “The policy of the government was to use the
militias to stay in power. This time the militias brought down the government.” Rania
seemed unworried by the weakened government losing territory to the militias and her
own rebel group. Her concerns had to do with displaced people pouring in, 700,000, in
a region of 2.8m. SPLM had never received an influx of so many internal refugees, on
the tail end of a devastating drought that destroyed local crops. …there were now
reports of people dying of starvation in several counties. “This is a first for us.” I visited
the acting governor, concerned about food security and the new arrivals: “There is
enough room for everyone, but the problem is water, …food. We depend on farming.
There will be deaths. The Nuba Mtns have become the safest region of Sudan.” The
rebels were eager to show us some territory they conquered from the government.
SPLM encouraged those in its territory not to identify by religion or tribe, but rather as
simply Nuba, to downplay divisions that have long plagued Sudan. The rebels had the
practice of identifying talented Nuba students at an early age and sending them abroad
for higher education, bypassing schools in the capital where Islamist education was
common. About 6 hours an enormous paved highway appeared before us like a sudden
mirage. SPLM captured the road this summer after the war began. It ended in Kadugli,
which the rebels wanted to take next. For years, the Army used…the highway to cut off
the rebel capital in Kauda from a large enclave it controlled; now the 2 were finally
connected. As we entered Mehtan, a hundred Nuba gathered under a tree to listen to
the imam read from the Quran, with the men and boys seated near his feet and the
women arranged in a long row behind them. When the services were over, the 65-year-
old imam sat with me next to the mosque as some passers-by listened in. …he wanted to
talk about the hunger his parishioners faced. Khartoum had fallen to the RSF, which
meant no more supplies from the capital. Locust swarms last year consumed the
sorghum harvest, leaving few seeds to plant. “Our lot is basically the same as it is for
those who fled from the north — no one has anything to eat.” While the rebels freed
the town from the government, the liberation brought no food. The village chief joined
us….He pointed into the branches of the tree under which we sat; I could see the fins of
a rocket-propelled grenade peeking out from the canopy. …launched by government
fighters.
One morning, distant figures of the guerrillas could be seen on the top of the
hill…; shortly afterward, their rockets were pouring down into Mehtan. When the army
retreated, SPLM gathered the villagers and declared the area liberated by the rebels. But
it had come at a steep cost: 100 people died. We arrived at Al Hadra, a town where the
government launched a retaliatory attack dropping a barrel bomb on a school that killed
11 students and 2 teachers. The village chief invited us to spend the night. …his 16-
year-old daughter died in the bombing, and his son returned from the hospital after
taking shrapnel in his stomach and eye. He was on his way to Mehtan…when he heard
the sound of an Antonov bomber, the Soviet-made planes used by the Armed
Forces….the plane dropped 4 bombs. We reached the school, a brick shell of its former
state with a crater in the courtyard. Bloodstains were visible on a wall. I heard about a
massacre in Tukma, a village outside rebel territory, where the 2 generals were vying
for control. Tukma was a quiet village home to a mixed Nuba and Arab community.
But the peace ended when Arab militias aligned with RSF began to attack the barracks
nearby. Rehab, was still in bed at dawn the day of the attack. While she slept, gunmen
were sneaking into Tukma bypassing the patrols. She gathered the children up to flee.
When the youngest boy asked her what was happening, she said: “These people have
come to kill us.” Mohammed rushed in the direction of his family. Arab militiamen
were racing into town, driving pickup trucks and carrying rifles. Mohammed wondered:
Where is my wife? But Rehab was running in the other direction toward mango groves
on the outskirts of town. As the shots rang out, she noticed there was blood on her legs.
The blood was coming from her womb. They had all survived except the unborn child,
who was lost in a miscarriage on the road. Mohammed was told the government had
taken the village from the militias. He and a group of men ventured back into Tukma,
where they found burned homes with the charred remains of their residents. They
buried the bodies they could recover in shallow graves. Mohammed and the others fled,
but left 3 men after they were hit by gunfire. Mohammed insisted they return once
more to see if those they had abandoned were alive. Two were dead, but 1, a forest
warden, could still speak. Before he died, he whispered the name of the man who shot
him — a nomadic Arab whom they all knew as their neighbor. They had been armed by
the RSF, “We saw him in the market, we shared ceremonies with the Arabs, and then
this war broke out and it became Arab versus Nuba.”
So far the SPLM stopped short of a total assault on the regional capital. Many
Nuba lived there, and the rebels did not want a blood bath to capture it. They would
slowly choke the city off, hoping the government soldiers, many of them Nuba, would
surrender. As we approached Kadugli, the landscape turned into a flat no man’s land.
A mosque lay in ruins after a 12-hour siege. We passed abandoned tanks too wrecked
for the rebels to fix. …it had exploded as it crossed over a land mine while an SPLM
commander was inside. The rebels had no mine-sweeping technology: they depended
on what one commander described as the “traditional method” of demining, which
As we approached the front lines, the sense of excitement grew among the rebels.
“From here you can see the lights of Kadugli,” said Lt. Gen. Marada, top commander
on the ground, “But they are not turning them on anymore, because we can shell them.”
On a dirt road we came across a herd of cattle being driven by young fighters who lifted
their rifles and cheered as we passed them, bragging that they had just raided them from
the city. If the state of the cows was any indication of the situation on the other side it
was not a good one: They were gaunt skeletons of cattle, and some could barely raise
their heads. We reached a rebel position that faced the northern side of the city. A group
of fighters were huddled in thatched huts. Some wore military boots; others had flip-
flops and Adidas. As we continued the march, more rebels joined us: Some brought
rocket launchers and Kalashnikov rifles. The commanders held wooden canes like those
used by Nuba chiefs. After most of an hour passed there were 2 dozen of us, and we
changed direction and scrambled to the top of a rocky hill. I looked down at Kadugli….
I could see water towers and roads. Then I saw a truck speeding toward us. Suddenly
there was some commotion among the rebels, and several men readied their rifles. But
the fighters calmed down when they saw the truck had a UN logo. “They’re hungry
down there, and they are desperate.” I asked him what the soldiers on the hill were
getting for food. “Just leaves.” The rebels’ commander recited the principles of the
SPLM and their long fight against discrimination against Black Africans: “We can
open up people’s eyes, Do they want freedom? Do they want rights?”
ISRAEL COMMITTED TO TRYING TO ENSURE THAT WHOEVER COMES OUT
ON TOP IN SUDAN’S POWER STRUGGLE WILL BE SYMPATHETIC TO TEL
AVIV. The majority of Sudanese citizens are against normalisation of relations with
Israel….This gives Israel vested interests in a military regime governing Sudan. “Israel
is deeply committed to ensuring that the military, whether Hemedti or
Burhan…dominate the politics of Sudan,” Dr Nader Hashemi, Center for Middle East
Studies, Univ of Denver School of Intl Studies told The New Arab. Why Israel would
like to prevent democratic development in Sudan and other Arab countries is not
difficult to understand. “Israel wants to have diplomatic relations with as many Arab
states as possible. It cannot have diplomatic relations with democracies in the Arab
world because democracies…will demand Israel make concessions to the Palestinians as
a condition for diplomatic relations. That’s something Israel refuses to do…Israel is
deeply committed to preserving the authoritarian political order in the Arab world and
that applies to Sudan.” But some experts argue Sudan’s military leadership will have a
challenging time solidifying Khartoum in the Abraham Accords camp. “Even the
generals are not confident to deliver this to Israel, as large factions of their own
supporters staunchly oppose making peace with Israel,” Sarah Leah Whitson,
Democracy for the Arab World Now. “Given that Burhan and Hemedti lack domestic
legitimacy, their relationship with Israel could be used against them,” Dr Aziz
Alghashian, Arab Gulf States Inst. “Both military generals and Sudan’s newly official
relations with Israel are not overly popular with the public. Israel understands its
relations with Sudan in its current form is very precarious. Israel trying to present itself
as a credible and legitimate mediator in Sudan’s conflict is indicative of its relationships
with both warlords. It has investments in both these military gangsters, and wants to
ensure that, whoever prevails, Israel will have good relationships with Burhan or
Hemedti.” The country’s foreign ministry joined Egypt in favour of Burhan, while
Mossad, like UAE and Libya’s Haftar, has deep ties with Hemedti. Cairo and Abu
Dhabi supporting opposing sides makes Israel less likely to fully back Burhan or
Hemedti.
“Israel offered itself up as a mediator boasting about its ties to both men, but no
one takes this rather laughable proposal seriously. It is suggestive of Israel’s goals to
expand its political, economic and military presence in East Africa. Analysing Israeli-
Sudanese relations and Khartoum’s place in the Abraham Accords requires taking stock
of Washington’s foreign policy. US policies vis-à-vis Sudan have not been oriented
around promoting successful democratic transition. Instead, they have been geared
toward ensuring the military can maintain stability and bring Khartoum into the
normalisation camp. “The political turbulence of the military junta and its desperation
to stay in power was an opportunity for the US to use leverage for Sudan to join the
Abraham Accords. …the focus of US foreign policy was not the suffering and socio-
economic and political concerns of 45 million Sudanese. It was very much preserving
the authoritarian order in the Arab world. What’s more disturbing is the extent to which
the US government aided and abetted military control and literally bribed Sudan with
removal from the US terrorism list for the sole…purpose of securing the initial sign-off
on the Abraham Accords, serving Israel’s interest, not America’s or Sudan’s.” …Pushing
Sudan toward formalised relations with Israel required US support for the Sudanese
military central role in the country’s transition. “The objective was much more regional
and supporting the relationship between Israel and Arab authoritarian regimes. That is
an important point lost in the debate …and the failure of national policy that contributed
to the crisis unfolding before us.” NYT/Gulf State Analytics