The cholera outbreak in Darfur leaves 40 dead in a week amid warnings of a humanitarian disaster

Doctors Without Borders announced the registration of at least 40 deaths due to the cholera outbreak in the Darfur region of Sudan during the past week, at a time when the country is experiencing the worst wave of the disease in years due to the ongoing war and severe shortage of medical services.

In a statement from the organization on Thursday: "In addition to a full-scale war, the people of Sudan are now suffering from the worst cholera outbreak the country has seen in years," noting that its medical teams have treated "more than 2,300 patients and recorded 40 deaths" in Darfur alone.

For its part, the General Coordination for Displaced Persons and Refugees in Darfur warned of the spread of the epidemic, as it has moved to new areas such as Jebel Marra, Zalingei, Nyala, and Khazan Jadid in the Shaireya locality, in addition to the displaced persons camps that have recorded unprecedented rates of spread.

According to the official spokesperson for the coordination, Adam Rajal, there has been a call for "urgent action" by the World Health Organization and relevant authorities to address this "emergency health and humanitarian disaster".

Statistics indicate that the number of cholera deaths has risen to 257 cases, with more than 5,886 infections recorded since the outbreak began in Darfur, which is witnessing fierce clashes between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces, amid a severe shortage of medical supplies and the absence of quarantine centers.

It is worth mentioning that the ongoing war between the army forces led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the Rapid Support Forces led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) since April 2023 has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands and the displacement of more than 13 million people.

In a related context, the United Nations has classified 17 Sudanese regions, including parts of Darfur, the Nuba Mountains, Khartoum, and Al-Jazeera, as "at risk of famine", exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in the country.