Sudan Restrictions and lack of medicines deprive people in Khartoum state of lifesaving care

“I recall a one-year-old child who was injured and lost his father from a bomb blast. He was in a critical condition but surprised us all when he recovered after two months of care in the trauma ward,” says Ammar. “When the boy was discharged, his mother – now a widow – had nowhere to go and spent three days trying to find transportation out of Khartoum to join her relatives in Darfur.”

Several MSF teams face severe challenges to keep services open, in large part due to administrative restrictions on staff travel permits.

“As our teams continue to deal with horrific influxes of casualties, restrictions on the movement of essential medical and other humanitarian staff into Khartoum for many months prevented people from being able to receive lifesaving treatment for wounds, and treatment for entirely preventable diseases,” says Vataux. “The demand on health services in Khartoum has only increased since the violence that engulfed Jazirah State in mid-December. It led to many health facilities in Wad Madani, the state capital, becoming non-functional, and also to many people returning to Khartoum.”

“Although MSF has just been granted permission to return to Wad Madani, which is positive news, this was the first time for over 90 days,” says Vataux. “We urge the Sudanese authorities to facilitate our access to Jazirah and Khartoum states on a regular basis, so that we can meet the ever-increasing needs of people.”