ALBAWABA - The World Health Organization (WHO) released a report warning of the lack of supplies and sources needed to serve 800,000 people who are still stuck in Darfur's El Fasher without enough food, water, or medical support.
WHO representative in Sudan, Dr Shible Sahbani, said that access to El Fasher has become "completely impossible" due to the heavy fighting between Sudan's rivals, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).
As talks between the warring parties in Geneva continue, Sahbani told journalists many Sudanese states are in dire need of assistance. " Darfur, Kordofan, Khartoum, and Al Jazira states are all but cut off from humanitarian and health assistance due to the relentless fighting," Sahbani stated.
"The situation in Darfur is particularly alarming, where in places like El Fasher, the wounded cannot get the urgent care they need; children and pregnant and breastfeeding women are weak due to acute hunger," the WHO envoy added.
He added that medical aid and humanitarian teams have been calling for immediate access to the areas affected most, and can almost be deemed as besieged by the warring factions.
The WHO official stressed that access was "immediately needed so that we can avert the disastrous health situation" and ensure the protection of civilians, aid teams, and public infrastructure including hospitals in line with international humanitarian law.
A few hospitals in El Fasher have been supplied by existing medical stockpiles, but the WHO official insisted that "it's not enough and it's not sustainable" and that the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, was still negotiating with the various warring parties to permit relief supplies to be delivered in whenever feasible.
Sahbani described the situation in Sudan as "one of the worst in the world" and issued a warning, stating that just 26% of the funding for the humanitarian response is still available.
Under the direction of the UN Secretary-General's Personal Envoy for Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra, discussions between representatives of the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces began last week in Geneva.
