Essential services at breaking point in Sudan: Red Cross

GENEVA

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Monday warned that essential services are at a breaking point in Sudan due to the ongoing conflict.

“Two months into the conflict, hostilities in densely populated urban areas have taken a disastrous toll on civilian infrastructure, especially in locations in and around the capital Khartoum and in Darfur,” the ICRC said in a statement.

“Hundreds of thousands of civilians in Khartoum have spent many weeks without clean water and electricity, having to walk long distances, often putting their lives at risk, to reach these essential services,” it said and added that the skyrocketing prices and shortages of fuel used for generators have made the situation "worse."

International humanitarian law protects the people who run, maintain, and repair civil infrastructure that provides essential services, Jean-Christophe Sandoz, the head of the delegation of ICRC in Sudan, said as technical personnel in the country have been unable to access civil infrastructure safely to make necessary repairs.

It also feared the outbreaks of waterborne diseases during the rainy season.

“Garbage has not been collected in many urban neighborhoods for weeks, and dead bodies still lie in the open in some hard-to-reach areas,” it said, adding: “At the same time, many residents have had no choice but to use unsafe drinking water from the Nile or other sources.”

Additionally, many medical facilities had to close their doors. In Khartoum, the ICRC estimates that only 20% of facilities still function and in many areas of Darfur, the state of healthcare provision is critical.

“The healthcare system finds itself under an enormous strain not only to treat a large number of wounded but also to provide routine services to the population,” it stated.

Sudan has been ravaged by fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 15. Nearly 1,000 civilians have been killed and thousands injured in the violence, according to local medics.