Scanning electron microscope image of the cholera bacterium. Source: Wikipedia
Sudan’s health minister declared a cholera outbreak on Saturday in a video released by the health ministry following weeks of heavy rains in the war-torn country.
“We are declaring a cholera epidemic due to weather conditions and contaminated drinking water,” Haitham Ibrahim said in the video.
He said the decision was made in coordination with authorities in the eastern Kassala state, UN agencies and experts, following “the discovery of the cholera virus by the public health laboratory.”
The northeast African country has been locked in a war since April 2023 between the Sudanese army, led by the country’s de facto ruler Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by the country’s former deputy prime minister, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.
The conflict has sparked one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with more than 25 million people – more than half the population – facing severe hunger.
Famine has been declared in displacement camps in the vast western region of Darfur.
Weeks of torrential rains have hit the country hard, causing extensive damage in Kassala state, with state authorities calling for “immediate” and “urgent” international aid.
The floods have forced thousands of people to flee and have led to an increase in illnesses such as diarrhea, especially among children.
Cholera causes severe diarrhea, vomiting and muscle cramps and is usually contracted by ingesting food or water contaminated with bacteria, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
It can lead to severe dehydration and, in some cases, death within a few hours.
The United Nations agency, WHO, said that as of July 28, 307,433 cholera cases and 2,326 deaths had been reported in 26 countries.
The war in Sudan is causing major problems for the work of international humanitarian organizations.
Both sides in the conflict have been accused of committing war crimes, including indiscriminate bombing of urban areas.
Tens of thousands of people have been killed in the war, with some estimates putting the number as high as 150,000, according to Tom Perriello, the US special envoy to Sudan.
The fighting has forced more than 10 million people to flee.
Ceasefire talks began in Switzerland on Wednesday, brokered by the United States, Saudi Arabia and Switzerland, but the Sudanese army has refused to take part.
Previous talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, failed to reach an agreement.
Sudan is facing what the United Nations calls its worst humanitarian crisis in recent years, with fighting showing no signs of abating.
© 2024 AFP
Source: Sudan Health Minister Declares Cholera Epidemic (August 18, 2024) Retrieved August 18, 2024 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-08-sudan-health-minister-declares-cholera.html
This document is subject to copyright. It may not be reproduced without written permission, except for fair dealing for the purposes of personal study or research. The content is provided for informational purposes only.
