Sudan health ministry reports over 13,000 HIV cases, rising disease outbreaks amid war

August 19, 2026 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan’s health ministry has recorded more than 13,000 cases of HIV and tens of thousands of hepatitis infections, officials said on Wednesday, as the war-torn nation faces mounting public health crises and disease outbreaks.

The ministry’s Communicable Diseases Department told a weekly emergency operations meeting in Khartoum that surveillance data through 2026 registered 13,401 cases of HIV.

Health officials also recorded about 32,000 cases of hepatitis B and 23,000 cases of hepatitis C through 2025, alongside localized outbreaks of hepatitis E in Blue Nile state.

Sudan’s healthcare infrastructure has been devastated by more than three years of conflict between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, leaving millions vulnerable to preventable illnesses and acute epidemics.

Epidemiological reports showed ongoing cholera infections across West Kordofan and North Kordofan states, while dengue fever transmission persisted in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states despite an overall drop in national case rates.

Malaria rates remained steady across most regions, while authorities in Red Sea state continued to treat patients for heatstroke.

Ali Babiker Sayed Ahmed, undersecretary at the federal health ministry, said specialized medical teams are preparing to deploy to Al Jazirah and Sennar states to investigate a reported rise in appendicitis cases.

Health authorities and rapid response units are coordinating with the United Nations children’s agency UNICEF to dispatch missions across seven states, as seasonal rains between August 11 and 17 damaged infrastructure in four states and eight localities.