Sudan’s Darfur grapples with severe measles outbreak amid ongoing violence

Sudan’s Darfur grapples with severe measles outbreak amid ongoing violence MSF official tells Al Jazeera South Darfur hospital ‘overwhelmed’ by rapid increase in measles cases. Displaced Sudanese families in the war-torn Darfur region are grappling with a dangerous measles outbreak that is spreading rapidly, a Doctors Without Borders (MSF) official warns. Dr Ali Almohammed, an MSF emergency health manager, told Al Jazeera on Monday that the group has been “overwhelmed” by measles cases arriving each day at the Nyala Teaching Hospital in South Darfur, where MSF provides paediatric and maternal healthcare. Recommended Stories list of 4 items list 1 of 4 RSF artillery strikes kill 16 civilians in Sudan’s embattled Kordofan list 2 of 4 US pushes for ceasefire in Sudan’s civil war as Kordofan violence escalates list 3 of 4 Sudanese bloc declares Nairobi roadmap, but is it a civilian breakthrough? list 4 of 4 Situation in Sudan’s White Nile shows “increased disrespect” of the law “We have 25 beds [in] isolation for measles, but every day the number of cases is increasing,” Almohammed said in an interview from Amsterdam. “The capacity of MSF to respond to all the needs of the people in Darfur is really limited. We cannot cover everything. Yes, we are trying to focus on the most lifesaving medical care, but still, our capacity is also limited,” he said. The outbreak of measles, a vaccine-preventable virus, comes as violence between the Sudanese military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the western region of Darfur and neighbouring areas has surged in recent weeks. More than 100,000 people have fled their homes in el-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State, after the RSF seized control of the city in late October after an 18-month siege. The United Nations recently warned that Darfur has become “the epicentre of human suffering in the world” and UN and other humanitarian agencies have stressed that trapped civilians lack medicines, food and other critical supplies. More than 1,300 new cases According to MSF, more than 1,300 new measles cases have been reported in Darfur since September. An extremely contagious virus, measles causes high fevers, coughing and rashes. It is particularly dangerous for children under age five because it can cause serious health complications, according to a fact sheet from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This week, MSF said that while nearly 179,000 Sudanese children had been vaccinated against the disease over six months last year, they are only a fraction of the 5 million who are at risk. The organisation said it is not able to operate in most of North Darfur, including el-Fasher, or in East Darfur as a result of the ongoing conflict. Almohammed also warned that other preventable diseases, such as diphtheria and whooping cough, are now appearing in Darfur with the number of vaccines arriving just a “drop in the ocean” of what’s needed. According to MSF, shipping vaccines has been difficult due to ongoing violence as well as “significant administrative and...

Preview: ~500 words