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MSF Chief: Sudan’s Situation Worst We’ve Ever Seen

International President of Doctors Without Borders (MSF) Christos Christou
International President of Doctors Without Borders (MSF) Christos Christou
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MSF Chief: Sudan’s Situation Worst We’ve Ever Seen

International President of Doctors Without Borders (MSF) Christos Christou
International President of Doctors Without Borders (MSF) Christos Christou

The health situation in Sudan is “the worst ever,” according to Christos Christou, the international president of Doctors Without Borders (MSF).
Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Christou warned that conditions are deteriorating rapidly due to severe challenges in movement, a limited presence of international aid organizations, and inadequate funding from donors.
Christou reported that more than 70% of health facilities have shut down, and malnutrition is on the rise.
He predicted a surge in malaria and cholera cases with the rainy season approaching.
The ongoing conflict between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has caused the world’s fastest-growing displacement crisis, worsening malnutrition among children and pregnant women.
Remaining health facilities are overwhelmed and at risk of collapse due to increasing violence, attacks, and looting.
During his recent visit to Sudan, Christou met with Deputy Chairman of the Sovereignty Council Malik Agar and senior health officials to discuss ways to improve humanitarian aid delivery.
Christou described the patterns of displacement, malnutrition, and other humanitarian needs in Sudan as “deeply troubling.”
He noted that humanitarian aid is not reaching enough people and stressed the urgent need to “scale up the humanitarian response.” This, he added, requires guarantees of protection from all warring parties.
According to Christou, one in three patients treated by the organization suffers from war-related injuries, with most being women and children. He called on all fighting parties to “do everything possible to protect civilians.”
“We have heard many patient testimonies about violence driven by ethnic motives, especially in Darfur,” Christou said.
MSF is in constant contact with all warring parties to ensure healthcare continues.
“We must remind them to follow international humanitarian law, protect civilians and infrastructure, and not use weapons in health facilities,” added the MSF president.
Christou emphasized that MSF provides life-saving healthcare to all in need in Sudan, remaining neutral and impartial.

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Yemeni Minister to Asharq Al-Awsat: Houthis Have Lost Nearly 30% of their Military Capabilities

This handout photo released by the US Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) shows a US F/A-18 Super Hornet attack fighter jet taking off from the US Navy's Nimitz-class USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier at sea on March 16, 2025. (Photo by Hunter DAY / DVIDS / AFP)
This handout photo released by the US Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) shows a US F/A-18 Super Hornet attack fighter jet taking off from the US Navy's Nimitz-class USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier at sea on March 16, 2025. (Photo by Hunter DAY / DVIDS / AFP)
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Yemeni Minister to Asharq Al-Awsat: Houthis Have Lost Nearly 30% of their Military Capabilities

This handout photo released by the US Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) shows a US F/A-18 Super Hornet attack fighter jet taking off from the US Navy's Nimitz-class USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier at sea on March 16, 2025. (Photo by Hunter DAY / DVIDS / AFP)
This handout photo released by the US Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) shows a US F/A-18 Super Hornet attack fighter jet taking off from the US Navy's Nimitz-class USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier at sea on March 16, 2025. (Photo by Hunter DAY / DVIDS / AFP)

The Iran-backed Houthis are in disarray over escalating American strikes targeting military and security sites, as well as weapons depots belonging to them, Yemeni Minister of Information Moammar Al-Eryani said, revealing that the group has lost nearly 30% of its military capabilities.

Al-Eryani told Asharq Al-Awsat that the recent strikes have directly hit "the military capabilities of the Houthi group, targeting mainly infrastructure related to ballistic missiles and drones, which were used to threaten international maritime navigation in the Red Sea, Bab el-Mandeb, and the Gulf of Aden."

US President Donald Trump had ordered the start of the military campaign against the Houthis on March 15, pledging to destroy their capabilities.

In the past four weeks, the Houthis have been hit by 365 air and naval strikes, field reports said. The campaign has been primarily targeting fortified bunkers and military warehouses, especially in the group's strongholds in the governorates of Saada, Sanaa, Amran, and Hodeidah.

"Our assessment, based on our field sources, is that the militia has lost 30% of its capabilities, and this number is rising as military operations continue,” Al-Eryani said.

The minister also spoke of "surprises” that will please Yemenis in the coming weeks.

Trump said Monday that the US campaign against the Houthis has been “very successful militarily.”

“We’ve really damaged them,” he said, adding that “we’ve gotten many of their leaders and their experts.”

The Yemeni Minister of Information considered the powerful strikes “as not enough to end the Houthi threat, especially since the militia is still receiving logistical support from Iran through multiple smuggling routes."

Last week, Britain’s The Telegraph quoted a senior Iranian official as saying that Iran had ordered military personnel to leave Yemen to avoid direct confrontation with the US.

Al-Eryani called for “keeping military, political, and economic pressure” on the Houthis and increasing control on the sources that provide arms to the Houthis. He also called for “supporting the legitimate forces to enable them to take control of all Yemeni territory."
Al-Eryani confirmed that the Houthis have recently suffered significant human losses at various leadership levels, yet the militias have avoided announcing such losses for fear of undermining the morale of their fighters.

Last month, Yemeni Defense Minister Lt. Gen. Mohsen Mohammed al-Daeri told Asharq Al-Awsat that the country’s armed forces and all military formations were at a high state of readiness to respond firmly to any Houthi attacks or provocations.

Al-Daeri said the Houthis bear full responsibility for the recent escalation, the imposition of international sanctions, and the militarization of regional waters, which have worsened the humanitarian and economic situation for Yemenis.