After almost 17 months of siege, the city of el-Fasher in Sudan’s North Darfur has become an “epicentre of child suffering” with starvation, mass displacement, and relentless violence, according to the UN children’s agency (UNICEF).
According to the organization, at least 600,000 people have been forced to flee el-Fasher and nearby camps in recent months as a result of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF)’s ongoing siege. Half of those are children. Since the civil war started in April of 2023, the RSF has been fighting government forces.
According to the organization, 260, 000 civilians, including 130, 000 children, have been stranded at El-Fasher, where they have been receiving no assistance for more than 16 months.
According to UNICEF’s CEO, Catherine Russell, “We are witnessing a devastating tragedy: El-Fasher children are starving while UNICEF’s lifesaving nutrition services are being blocked.” The children’s lives depend on it, according to the statement “Blocking humanitarian access is a grave violation of children’s rights.”
More than 1,100 “grave violations” have been documented by UNICEF since the siege started in April 2024, including the deaths and mutilations of more than 1, 000 children. While some have been abducted or recruited by armed groups, others have experienced sexual violence. According to the organization, the actual scale is likely much higher.
Seven children were killed in an attack on the displacement camp Abu Shouk, which was reported this week, just outside the city, in addition to the reported seven previous reports of a large-scale casualty incident.
Supply lines have been halted as a result of the RSF siege, making hospitals inoperable. Due to the lack of resources, mobile nutrition teams were forced to halt operations, according to UNICEF, leaving 6, 000 children who were severely ill with acute malnutrition without treatment.
More than 10,000 children have received acute malnutrition treatment since January, but services have now been suspended. According to the organization, 63 people died from hunger alone last week, primarily women and children.
Nearly 100, 000 suspected cases and 2,400 deaths have been reported nationwide since last year as a result of Sudan’s worst cholera outbreak in decades. Nearly 5, 000 cases and 98 deaths have been reported in Darfur alone, according to UNICEF.
A fragile powersharing agreement that had fallen during the Sudanese war started in April 2023.
In Khartoum, the country’s capital, violence erupted as a result of persistent conflict between Sudan’s military, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the RSF, led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo. Soon, it spread to other regions, including the RSF-held Darfur region in the country’s west.
According to UN agencies, nearly 13 million people have been internally and nearly 40 000 have been killed, while nearly 25 million people have acute hunger.
UNICEF representatives urged Sudan’s conflict-torn sides to end fighting and allow for prompt, secure, and ongoing humanitarian aid to El-Fasher and other conflict-torn regions.
Source: Aljazeera
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