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The war in South Dafur has shattered health care and safety across the region.
Sudanese army soldiers. Picture: Ebrahim Hamid/AFP
The latest report released by Doctors Without Borders (MSF) paints an alarming picture of violence, insecurity and hunger devastating people’s lives in South Darfur, due to the war in Sudan, with the department of international relations and cooperation (Dirco) yesterday calling for an immediate end to the conflict.
key observations revealed in the report
- A health care system in ruins, with an inadequate international response having pushed people’s coping strategies to their limits;
- Civilian protection almost nonexistent and aid delivery limited;
- MSF treated over 10 000 malnourished children and hundreds of sexual violence survivors, with many health care facilities destroyed or abandoned; and
- Over 50% of sexual violence cases were committed by noncivilians, with sexual violence used as a weapon of war in the absence of mechanisms to bring perpetrators to justice.
‘Suffering, abuse and cruelty’
“The voices and stories of people reflect the suffering, abuse and cruelty felt throughout communities – but also people’s endurance and compassion,” said Ozan Agbas, MSF emergency manager for Sudan.
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“With civilian protection collapsed and humanitarian aid still inadequate, people in South Darfur demand to be listened to.”
“The humanitarian presence, substantial before the outbreak of civil war in April of 2023, disintegrated as fighting took hold,” read the report.
“Although ground fighting has ceased for now, insecurity remains, as people are subjected to appalling violence on roads, farmland and in their own homes.
“Reports of arbitrary detention, theft and looting are also commonplace. Air strikes and drone strikes continue to hit South Darfur and other parts of the country.”
A call to end strife
Calling for an end to the strife, Dirco spokesperson Chrispin Phiri, said SA urged all parties to resume “genuine and sincere talks to bring an end to the human suffering that the people of Sudan have endured for a long time”.
South Africa, said Phiri, stood “in solidarity with the innocent people of Sudan, who have been subjected to untold suffering”.
“There can be no military solution to the fighting, which must be resolved in a peaceful manner,” he said.
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