More than 100,000 people are estimated to have fled the conflict in Sudan by crossing the border to seek refuge in neighboring countries, while more than 334,000 have fled their homes and moved within the country, the International Organization for Migration and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees have said. during a press conference in Geneva.

At the same time, the UN announced that the aid program for Sudan has not been funded this year. Aid agencies are $1.5 billion short of a humanitarian crisis that already exists but has been exacerbated by the conflict.

The violent conflicts in Sudan, clashes between the army and a paramilitary organization continued, despite the extension of the cease-fire, which is constantly being violated, at a time when the international community is concerned about the humanitarian situation that is heading towards “catastrophe”.

“We hear gunfire, warplanes and anti-aircraft fire,” said a resident of Khartoum, the Sudanese capital that has been plunged into chaos since April 15. That’s when the clashes began between the head of the army, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the head of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hamedi. The two men led the country after the 2021 coup.

From the conflicts in Khartoum and in other areas of Sudan, mainly Darfur, more than 500 people have been killed and ten times as many injured, according to accounts that are not believed to correspond to reality.

On Sunday it was extended for 72 hours the truce, which, however, has not been respected.

Foreigners are still fleeing the country, with the UN estimating that “more than 800,000 people” will seek refuge in neighboring countries including Egypt, Chad, Ethiopia and the Central African Republic.

Those left behind face shortages of drinking water, electricity and food as temperatures in Khartoum exceed 40 degrees Celsius.

Violence and looting

The conflict has turned an already existing humanitarian crisis into a “real disaster”, Abdou Dieng, Sudan’s humanitarian aid coordinator, warned on Monday.

For Kenyan President William Ruto the crisis has reached “a catastrophic level”. The two generals refuse to “listen to the appeals” of the international community, he complained, while demanding that humanitarian aid be delivered to Sudan “with or without a ceasefire”.

In a telephone conversation with the American Secretary of State Anthony Blinken with Ruto he “reiterated US support” in diplomatic efforts to “end the conflict” and ensure “unimpeded humanitarian access”.

The UN official for humanitarian affairs Martin Griffiths went to Nairobi yesterday on an emergency mission. The situation “after April 15 is catastrophic,” he tweeted.

Neither the hospitals nor the humanitarian organizations were spared from the violence and looting, many of which were forced to suspend part of their activities.

The World Health Organization (WHO) also spoke of the “devastation” of Sudan’s health system, which was already in a difficult situation before the outbreak of the conflicts, as the country, one of the poorest in the world, had been sanctioned for two decades.

Only 16% of health facilities are operational in Khartoum and even in these there are shortages of medical supplies and staff.

Emergency removals

Aid is arriving in Khartoum by the dropper: six containers of medical supplies from the WHO arrived mainly to deal with severe injuries and acute malnutrition. Fuel, which is increasingly scarce, was distributed to some hospitals that depend on generators.

The World Food Program (WFP) has also begun to resume operations after a temporary suspension following the deaths of three of its workers.

In addition to Khartoum, chaos reigns in West Darfur, where even civilians are involved in the fighting, according to the UN, which has said about 100 people have been killed since last week.

“The health system has completely collapsed in El Geneina,” the capital of West Darfur, the Sudanese doctors’ union said, adding that after the looting of medical centers and camps for the displaced, there had been “emergency evacuations” of humanitarian groups.

A total of more than 330,000 people have been displaced across the country, according to the International Organization for Migration.