from RAJI BASHIR in Khartoum, Sudan
Sudan Bureau
KHARTOUM, (CAJ News) – REPORTS of corpses decomposing on the streets of the capital, Khartoum, add a gory dimension to the conflict in Sudan.
Morgues are at breaking point due to power outages and insufficient capacity to store the bodies, putting families and children at increasing risk of diseases.
The capital city has suffered intermittent power and communications blackouts since the conflict erupted in April, with fights intensifying on the city streets in recent weeks.
Prolonged power shortages have left the city’s morgues without refrigeration, leaving bodies to decompose in the heat, and causing the risk of major disease outbreaks in Khartoum.
The Sudanese Doctors Syndicate, a doctor’s union, lamented that there are also no medical staff left at the morgues, leaving the bodies exposed and untreated.
Out of 89 main hospitals in the capital and states, 71 are out of service, with the rest operating at partial capacity.
Armed groups have occupied some health facilities.
At least 53 attacks on health care have been documented, resulting in 11 deaths since April.
The rising numbers of corpses, severe water shortages, non-functioning hygiene and sanitation services, and lack of water treatment options are also prompting fears of a cholera outbreak in the city.
The absence of a functioning public health laboratory makes it difficult to assess the state of the crisis.
However, Khartoum typically experiences cholera outbreaks during the annual rainy season, which began in June.
At least 2 435 children have been killed or injured during the conflict in Sudan. Recent clashes in the capital have added to the toll.
“The healthcare system is hanging by a thread,” said Dr Bashir Kamal Eldin Hamid, Save the Children’s Health and Nutrition Director.
Hamid said as casualties increase, hospitals are closing, completely emptied of medicines and doctors, and looted of any remaining supplies.
“The inability to give those who have died a dignified burial is yet another element of the suffering of families in Khartoum,” said the official.
“We are seeing a health crisis in the making, on top of a crisis of sorrow, fear and pain. Where hospitals are still open, they are stretched beyond capacity and nearly non-functional due to staff fatigue and a lack of supplies,” Hamid said.
An armed conflict is ongoing between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
– CAJ News