The Deputy Spokesperson for Secretary-General António Guterres has said the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is alarmed by the ongoing violence against civilians in Sudan’s Kordofan region.
While briefing the media in New York on Thursday, Farhan Haq stated that in West Kordofan State, a professional association of Sudanese doctors reported on Wednesday that an attack on the Brima Rashid area, north of An Nuhud town, killed some 30 people and seriously injured more than 40 others.
“Reports from the ground indicate that fighters entered the centre of the village in combat vehicles and opened fire indiscriminately on homes and a market,” he said. “Women, children, and older people are reportedly among the casualties. Medical sources say many of the wounded need urgent surgical care.”
“OCHA stresses that events in Brima Rashid underscore the growing risks facing civilians in the Kordofan region and the urgent need for a cessation of hostilities, protection of civilians, and safe, sustained access to humanitarian assistance and services,” Haq added.
He said OCHA is also warning about the impact of growing gaps in humanitarian assistance in the Darfur region. In North Darfur State, needs are mounting in the locality of Tawila, which is hosting hundreds of thousands of people who fled fighting in and around El Fasher.
“UN humanitarian partners report that just over half of water needs are currently being met, and latrine coverage has dropped to a critically low ratio of one latrine for every 150 people,” Haq stated.
According to OCHA, many emergency latrines are collapsing, with no funding available for de-sludging or replacement. Hygiene support is minimal, particularly in remote areas, and distributions of dignity kits have been inconsistent, as funding constraints have led to supply shortages.
“A cholera outbreak in Tawila is compounding this already dire situation,” Haq said. “As you know, the UN and its partners launched an operational response plan focusing on Tawila earlier this week, requesting $120 million to urgently scale up life-saving support in the area.”
Meanwhile, in Northern State, a recent nutrition campaign led by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and its partners reached more than 98 percent of the targeted 135,000 children and 28,000 pregnant women across seven localities.
“Nearly 2,000 cases of acute malnutrition were identified, and mobile clinics have been dispatched to gathering sites in Ad Dabbah and Delgo, which continue to receive people fleeing conflict in North Darfur,” Haq disclosed.