Estimates of Hunger, Disease Claiming 990 Lives in Sudan’s Darfur

Sudanese displaced arrive in El Gedaref city in the east on Sunday, fleeing from Sennar state to the south (AFP)
Sudanese displaced arrive in El Gedaref city in the east on Sunday, fleeing from Sennar state to the south (AFP)
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Estimates of Hunger, Disease Claiming 990 Lives in Sudan’s Darfur

Sudanese displaced arrive in El Gedaref city in the east on Sunday, fleeing from Sennar state to the south (AFP)
Sudanese displaced arrive in El Gedaref city in the east on Sunday, fleeing from Sennar state to the south (AFP)

Over 50,000 people fled by foot from intense fighting between the army and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the Sudanese city of El Fashir, North Darfur. They walked more than 60 kilometers to Tawila town in scorching temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius. Some died from hunger and thirst, as reported by local media.

Displaced individuals in Tawila and other Darfur towns endure dire conditions, with 991 deaths recorded between April 15 and May 15 due to famine and disease outbreaks, according to Adam Rijal, spokesperson for Darfur’s Coordination of Displaced Persons and Refugees.

“The displaced in Tawila are starving, with children crying from hunger,” Rijal told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“The little milk they receive isn’t enough for their small stomachs,” he added, underscoring Tawila’s critical lack of basic essentials.

Eyewitnesses described dire conditions faced by refugees fleeing war on their long journey to Tawila, where scorching temperatures worsened their plight.

Asylum seekers in Tawila affirm that the displacement journeys are unsafe, with vulnerable refugees at risk of being robbed by armed gangs. Those reaching Tawila considered themselves lucky to have avoided such attacks.

Sudanese human rights activist Adam Idris told Asharq Al-Awsat that indiscriminate shelling in El Fashir claimed hundreds of lives, forcing many to flee to Tawila and areas controlled by the Sudan Liberation Movement.

Idris noted that some displaced persons died en route due to hunger and thirst, urging humanitarian organizations to swiftly provide aid in the town.

In a related development, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) reported on Tuesday that over 402,000 Sudanese refugees are now registered in Egypt, with more expected in the coming months.

In a statement, UNHCR noted that over 38,000 Sudanese refugees arrived in Egypt in May alone. Libya and Uganda have recently joined the Regional Refugee Response Plan, along with the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, and South Sudan.

UNHCR emphasized that only 19% of the needed funds for refugee assistance have been received so far, insufficient to meet the urgent needs of displaced people.

In Libya, more than 20,000 Sudanese refugees have arrived since April, with many settling in the eastern regions.

Uganda, hosting the largest number of refugees in Africa, has received over 39,000 Sudanese refugees since the conflict began, including 27,000 this year. This number is nearly three times higher than anticipated.

After 14 months of conflict, thousands continue to flee Sudan due to violence, violations, death, disrupted services, and limited humanitarian aid access, with the threat of famine looming.



Lebanon Security Source Says Hezbollah Official Targeted in Beirut Strike

Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
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Lebanon Security Source Says Hezbollah Official Targeted in Beirut Strike

Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

A Lebanese security source said the target of a deadly Israeli airstrike on central Beirut early Saturday was a senior Hezbollah official, adding it was unclear whether he was killed.

"The Israeli strike on Basta targeted a leading Hezbollah figure," the security official told AFP without naming the figure, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

The early morning airstrike has killed at least 15 people and injured 63, according to authorities, and had brought down an eight-storey building nearby, in the second such attack on the working-class neighbourhood of Basta in as many months.

"The strike was so strong it felt like the building was about to fall on our heads," said Samir, 60, who lives with his family in a building facing the one that was hit.

"It felt like they had targeted my house," he said, asking to be identified by only his first name because of security concerns.

There had been no evacuation warning issued by the Israeli military for the Basta area.

After the strike, Samir fled his home in the middle of the night with his wife and two children, aged 14 and just three.

On Saturday morning, dumbstruck residents watched as an excavator cleared the wreckage of the razed building and rescue efforts continued, with nearby buildings also damaged in the attack, AFP journalists reported.

The densely packed district has welcomed people displaced from traditional Hezbollah bastions in Lebanon's east, south and southern Beirut, after Israel intensified its air campaign on September 23, later sending in ground troops.

"We saw two dead people on the ground... The children started crying and their mother cried even more," Samir told AFP, reporting minor damage to his home.

Since last Sunday, four deadly Israeli strikes have hit central Beirut, including one that killed Hezbollah spokesman Mohammed Afif.

Residents across the city and its outskirts awoke at 0400 (0200 GMT) on Saturday to loud explosions and the smell of gunpowder in the air.

"It was the first time I've woken up screaming in terror," said Salah, a 35-year-old father of two who lives in the same street as the building that was targeted.

"Words can't express the fear that gripped me," he said.

Saturday's strikes were the second time the Basta district had been targeted since war broke out, after deadly twin strikes early in October hit the area and the Nweiri neighbourhood.

Last month's attacks killed 22 people and had targeted Hezbollah security chief Wafiq Safa, who made it out alive, a source close to the group told AFP.

Salah said his wife and children had been in the northern city of Tripoli, about 70 kilometres away (45 miles), but that he had to stay in the capital because of work.

His family had been due to return this weekend because their school reopens on Monday, but now he has decided against it following the attack.

"I miss them. Every day they ask me: 'Dad, when are we coming home?'" he said.

Lebanon's health ministry says that more than 3,650 people have been killed since October 2023, after Hezbollah initiated exchanges of fire with Israel in solidarity with its Iran-backed ally Hamas over the Gaza war.

However, most of the deaths in Lebanon have been since September this year.

Despite the trauma caused by Saturday's strike, Samir said he and his family had no choice but to return home.

"Where else would I go?" he asked.

"All my relatives and siblings have been displaced from Beirut's southern suburbs and from the south."