Geneva: The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimated that 413 people have died in the ongoing conflict in Sudan, and claimed that children are paying a significant price, with at least nine allegedly dying and more than 50 suffering serious injuries, reported Turkish News Agency Anadolu.
The ongoing conflict involves the nation’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
At a UN press briefing, WHO spokesperson Margaret Harris said, “According to the Ministry of Health in Sudan, the number of health facilities that have stopped working is 20. And also, according to Ministry of Health numbers, the number of health facilities at risk of stopping is 12.”
According to ANI, UNICEF spokesperson James Elder stated at the same press conference that “clearly, as ever, the fighting takes a devastating toll on children.
He added, “We now have reports of at least nine children killed and at least 50 injured. Those numbers will continue to rise as long as fighting continues.”
According to Elder, a significant amount of people are stranded without access to energy, according to a report by Anadolu.
He added that Sudan already had one of the world’s highest malnutrition rates among children.
“And we’ve now got a situation where critical life-saving support for around 50,000 children is at risk,” said the UNICEF spokesperson.
Due to power outages and the inability to refuel generators, the violence also jeopardises “the cold chain” in Sudan, putting over $40 million worth of vaccinations and insulin at risk, according to Elder.
Anadolu reported that UNICEF has received reports of children seeking refuge in schools and daycare centres as battle rages all around them as well as stories of children’s hospitals being forced to flee as shelling gets closer.
According to Anadolu, fighting broke out last Saturday between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the city of Khartoum and its surrounding areas.
Sudan has been without a functioning government since October 2021, when the military overthrew Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s transitional administration and proclaimed a state of emergency in what political opponents referred to as a “coup.”
With inputs from agencies
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