The warning from the UN aid coordination office, OCHAfollows continuous and repeated attacks against El Fasher, besieged by rapid support paramilitary forces.
Ten days ago, the Daraja Oula neighborhood in the Darfur city was targeted by a drone strike, killing at least 57 civilians displaced by the war.
Nearly 30 months of war in Sudan have left almost two out of three people in urgent need of humanitarian aid, including 16 million children.
Famine has been confirmed in various parts of the country and millions of people remain at risk of starvation.
Meanwhile, epidemics are worsening the crisis, alongside worsening climate shocks, according to OCHA, with more than 3,400 deaths from the ongoing cholera epidemic since July 2024 and more than 120,000 suspected cases today.
The journey continues
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates that more than 3,000 people were newly displaced in North Darfur last week, including 1,500 from El Fasherthe state capital under siege, and 1,500 others from Abu Gamrafollowing the resumption of fighting.
Tensions are also rising sharply in the Kordofan region. Nearly 1,000 people were moved from the town of Lagawa, in West Kordofan State, due to increased insecurity, warned UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric.
Meanwhile, in Southern Kordofan, the town of Dilling and the state capital, Kadugli, remain under siege, with supply routes cut and shortages of basic goods worsening by the day.
“Civilians across Sudan continue to bear the brunt of this unrelenting violence,” Mr. Dujarric said.
“Despite the many challenges, our humanitarian colleagues continue to provide lifesaving assistance to displaced people in areas where we and our partners can safely access. »
Kyrgyzstan: reinstating the death penalty would violate international law, warns Türk
On Monday, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called the authorities in Kyrgyzstan not to reintroduce the death penalty following the rape and murder of a young girl last month.
Volker Türk warned that this would constitute a serious violation of international law.
Kyrgyzstan stopped using the death penalty in 1998, then permanently banned its use in law in 2010, when it ratified the Second Optional Protocol to the Convention. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
Threat of withdrawal from the treaty
According to Mr. Türk’s office, the Kyrgyz authorities wish to modify the Constitution to allow the use of the death penalty, particularly in cases of child rape.
They also proposed that the country withdraw from the optional protocol.
These rights “cannot be taken away, whatever the justification put forward,” declared the High Commissioner.
He added that no justice system is perfect and if the death penalty was reintroduced, it would ultimately lead to the death of innocent people at the hands of the state.
Health crisis in DR Congo
OCHA reported on Monday that health systems in North and South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), have effectively collapsed.
About 85 percent of health facilities in the volatile eastern region, where armed groups dominate, are experiencing drug shortages, while almost 40 percent have experienced an exodus of medical staff, further weakening the delivery of essential health services.
In North Kivu alone, UN partners reported that a third of all health facilities in the province’s conflict zones have been destroyed, looted or abandoned, leaving millions of people with extremely limited access to health care.
Worse still, the collapse of health systems is compounded by deadly epidemics.
“Since the start of the year, health partners have recorded more than 8,600 cases of cholera, 8,000 cases of monkeypox and more than 10,500 cases of measles,” said UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric.
Immediate action is needed
Without urgent action, the UN estimates that 6,000 preventable deaths could occur by the end of the year.
Currently, the DRC Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan is only 16 percent funded, with $410 million received. The UN desperately needs an additional $6 million to purchase essential supplies and maintain these vital services.
In more positive health news, DRC health authorities have released the last patient from the last Ebola virus outbreak, marking what the World Health Organization described as “an important step.”
A total of 19 patients have recovered from the disease, the UN health agency said. No new cases have been reported since September 25. A total of 64 cases (53 confirmed and 11 probable) have been reported since the outbreak was declared on September 4 in Kasai province.
Increase in cholera in Haiti
Now for another hotspot in the crisis and the impact of Haiti’s ongoing gang war: OCHA is warning of a resurgence of cholera in the Ouest department over the past month.
Health authorities reported new cases in the commune of Pétion-Ville, after 11 weeks without any cases.
In a single week, between October 5 and 11, 139 suspected cases were recorded, including more than 20 laboratory confirmed. Five deaths were also reported.
Pétion-Ville, as well as parts of the capital Port-au-Prince, including the commune of Cité-Soleil, remain on red alert, amid concerns about the spread of cholera in sites hosting internally displaced people.
Haiti’s Ministry of Health, with support from the UN-backed Pan American Health Organization (WHO) and its humanitarian partners, has intensified disinfection campaigns, community awareness activities and the distribution of chlorine, drinking water and hygiene kits in the most affected areas.
Originally published at Almouwatin.com
