At least three children are losing their lives every day in El-Fasher, the capital of Sudan’s North Darfur state, due to severe malnutrition and illness, according to a statement released Friday by the Sudan Doctors Network.
“For over a month, the humanitarian situation in El-Fasher has deteriorated drastically, with an increasing number of child deaths caused by extreme food shortages and widespread malnutrition.
This is happening as there remains no sign of opening a humanitarian corridor that could save thousands of children,” the statement said via the social media platform X.
The network expressed “deep concern” over the worsening situation, saying its field teams in El-Fasher are witnessing conditions “beyond comprehension” as the city suffers from critical shortages of food and medicine caused by the ongoing siege.
“Each passing day, no fewer than three children die from malnutrition, disease, and the desperate lack of medical and humanitarian aid,” it added.
On Thursday, four UN agencies, UNICEF, the World Food Programme, the International Organization for Migration, and the UN Refugee Agency, issued a joint statement revealing that 260,000 civilians, including 130,000 children, are trapped in El-Fasher without access to food, water, or healthcare.
The El-Fasher Resistance Coordination Committee also reported that at least 239 children have died of hunger as a result of the Rapid Support Forces’ (RSF) blockade of the city, though it did not specify the timeframe of those deaths.
The RSF has besieged El-Fasher since May 10, 2024, while the Sudanese army continues efforts to break the blockade. The city serves as the main humanitarian hub for all five states of Darfur.
The ongoing war between the Sudanese army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has killed over 20,000 people and displaced 14 million, according to UN and local reports. However, research from US universities suggests the death toll could be as high as 130,000.
