WHO: Healthcare System in Sudan Is Collapsing

The WHO director visits the children’s ward at Port Sudan Hospital. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The WHO director visits the children’s ward at Port Sudan Hospital. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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WHO: Healthcare System in Sudan Is Collapsing

The WHO director visits the children’s ward at Port Sudan Hospital. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The WHO director visits the children’s ward at Port Sudan Hospital. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The World Health Organization (WHO) has stated that Sudan’s healthcare system is “collapsing in some areas but holding up in others thanks to the tireless work of doctors.”

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrived in Port Sudan on Saturday, accompanied by Dr. Hanan Balkhi, the WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Region.

This marks Tedros’ first visit to Sudan since the conflict erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in April 2023.

Balkhi told Asharq Al-Awsat that the health situation in Sudan is challenging in many areas but improving in others due to the efforts of local doctors.

She highlighted the importance of Tedros’ visit in understanding the health crisis, particularly for children.

Balkhi also noted that the current security situation makes it difficult for doctors to work effectively. She said there are no accurate estimates of the financial needs for humanitarian and health support in Sudan.

“We hope for a quick resolution to the crisis and are working to secure the necessary support to help address these challenges,” she told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Tedros visited the Pediatric Emergency Hospital in Port Sudan and examined the overcrowded malnutrition ward.

Dr. Ayman Abdelkader, the hospital’s medical director, called the visit “very important” and noted that Tedros has promised to help set up a new children’s hospital.

Sudanese Health Minister Haitham Mohamed Ibrahim welcomed Tedros at Port Sudan airport, noting that the visit shows the WHO’s ongoing support for Sudan.

Ibrahim stressed that the WHO’s work goes beyond financial aid, involving efforts to rally global organizations to fund activities in Sudan.

Tedros will meet with key officials, including Deputy Chairman Malik Agar and council member Ibrahim Jaber, as well as UN representatives and staff from shelters and health facilities.

Since the conflict began, more than 80% of hospitals and medical facilities in Sudan have gone out of service.

The violence has caused at least 30,000 deaths and over 70,000 injuries.

In June, the WHO warned that access to aid and health services in Sudan is “extremely limited.” About 15 million people in Sudan need urgent healthcare, including maternal and newborn care, cancer and diabetes treatment, and other essential services.



Arab League Urges UN Security Council to Stop Israeli Assault against Palestinian People

A man prepares meals to be distributed to displaced Palestinians in front of a leveled building in Gaza City on November 2, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
A man prepares meals to be distributed to displaced Palestinians in front of a leveled building in Gaza City on November 2, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
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Arab League Urges UN Security Council to Stop Israeli Assault against Palestinian People

A man prepares meals to be distributed to displaced Palestinians in front of a leveled building in Gaza City on November 2, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
A man prepares meals to be distributed to displaced Palestinians in front of a leveled building in Gaza City on November 2, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

The Arab League urged on Saturday the UN Security Council and the international community to assume their responsibilities and exert pressure on Israel to stop its assaut against the Palestinian people and to ensure that it provides all humanitarian assistance needed by the people in Gaza Strip.

In a statement marking the 107th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, the Arab League urged Britain and all the other countries that did not recognize the Palestinian state to take this step in support of peace in line with the two-state solution.

It emphasized that the only way to achieve just, comprehensive and lasting peace is to end the Israeli occupation of all Palestinian and Arab territories occupied since 1967, and to establish an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital according to international resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative.

"The Balfour Declaration continues to be a profound wound in the human conscience due to the Nakba that the Palestinian people have experienced and the ongoing deprivation of their legitimate and inalienable rights to freedom and independence. This refers to the Israeli occupation's violations and practices, settlement and Judaization, annexation and siege, the destruction of the Palestinian people's livelihoods, and the desecration of their religious shrines," the Arab League statement said.

It stressed that Israel's continued crimes and violations are a reflection of the international community's inability to fulfil its obligations and assume its responsibilities in resisting aggression and occupation, protecting the Palestinian people.

It must ask Israel to comply with the principles of international law and relevant resolutions in a manner that ends the occupation and allows the Palestinian people to exercise their right to self-determination in an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The Arab League stressed that Israel continues to insist on expanding the area of its hostilities to include Lebanon and the occupied Syrian Golan Heights despite the imminent danger of a regional war.

Moreover, the Israeli Knesset's decision to ban UNRWA's work in the occupied Palestinian territories is an additional flagrant violation of the UN Charter, of the international will, and of all human values.

The aim of this step is to destroy generations of Palestinians for whom the UN agency represents a lifeline in catastrophic humanitarian conditions. It is imperative that Israel stop these crimes and protect the agency's work in accordance with its UN mandate.