Cholera outbreak worsens among displaced in eastern Sudan

December 15, 2024 (AL FAW) – A surge in cholera cases and deaths is overwhelming the eastern Sudanese town of Al Faw, doctors said on Sunday, as it struggles to cope with an influx of people displaced by fighting in the country’s south.

Hundreds of thousands have fled violence in the Al-Jazirah region since conflict erupted between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in April. Many have sought shelter in Al Faw, where camps for the displaced are now overflowing.

“The hospital has received a large number of cholera patients recently,” doctors at Al Faw Hospital told Sudan Tribune, putting the figure at 2,286 cases, including 145 deaths.

Since November, they said, there have been 200 cases and 18 deaths in the town’s displacement camps.

Around 80% of those infected in Al Faw had fled from eastern Al Jazirah and the Um Al-Qura locality, where the disease is rife.

Heavy fighting continues in Um Al-Qura as the army attempts to regain control of the area.

Dafallah Mohamed Ali, director of health affairs in Al Faw, said local authorities were working to contain the outbreak. Ten isolation centres, six in displacement camps, had been set up in the town and nearby villages.

He added that aid agencies, including the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), provided clean drinking water, built toilets, and set up health clinics in shelters.

According to the health ministry, Sudan has recorded 46,036 cholera cases and 1,216 deaths in the past five months. The outbreak has spread across 81 localities in 11 of Sudan’s 18 states.