Emergency medical aid arrives in Sudan as fighting rages on

A plane carrying eight tons of emergency medical aid has landed in Sudan to resupply a hospital damaged by more than two weeks of fighting between forces loyal to rival generals.

The supplies are enough to treat hundreds of wounded as the civilian death toll from violence across the country exceeds 400.

On April 15, clashes broke out between the country’s army and its paramilitary forces, threatening to plunge Sudan into a bitter civil war.

More than two-thirds of hospitals in the fighting zone have been out of service due to shortages of medical supplies, staff, water and electricity, a national association of doctors said.

Supplies including anesthesia, dressings, sutures and other surgical materials are sufficient to treat more than 1,000 people injured in the conflict, the ICRC said.

“We want to get these materials to some of the busiest hospitals in the capital,” Khartoum and other hotspots, said Patrick Youssef, the ICRC’s regional director for Africa.

The United Sudanese Doctors Organization, which monitors casualties, said on Sunday that 425 civilians had been killed and 2,091 wounded in the past two weeks.

The total death toll, including fighters, was 528, with 4,500 wounded, Sudan’s health ministry said on Saturday.

Some of the deadliest fighting raged in Khartoum.

Army chief General Abdul Fattah al-Burhan fought with General Mohammad Hamdan Dagalo, head of the paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Both generals have powerful foreign backers who were allies in the October 2021 military coup that prevented Sudan’s intermittent transition to democracy, but have since turned on each other.

Tens of thousands have fled to neighboring countries, including Chad and Egypt, while others have been stranded by dwindling supplies.

Thousands of foreigners have been evacuated by air and land convoy.

Fighting continued in different parts of the capital on Sunday, with residents sheltering in their homes reporting hearing artillery fire.

Fighting has stalled despite repeated attempts by international mediators, but the ceasefire has never been fully respected.

Over the weekend, residents reported that shops were reopening in some parts of Khartoum and normalcy was gradually returning as fighting dwindled after another uneasy truce.

But in other areas, terrified residents reported thunderous explosions around them as militants ransacked homes.

The paramilitary group RSF said on Sunday it would extend the humanitarian ceasefire for another 72 hours from midnight, according to a statement on the group’s official Facebook page.

The Sudanese army did not immediately respond to RSF’s statement.

Yusuf said the agency has been in touch with the high command of both sides to ensure that medical assistance can reach the hospital safely.

“With this news today, we really hope this becomes part of a stable coordination mechanism to allow other flights to come in,” he said.

Mr Yusuf said more medical aid was ready to be airlifted to Khartoum pending the necessary clearances and security guarantees.

Sudan’s healthcare system has nearly collapsed, with dozens of hospitals out of service.

Several aid agencies had to suspend operations and evacuate staff.

Most of the estimated 16,000 Americans currently in Sudan are believed to be dual US-Sudanese.

The Ministry of Defense said in a statement on Saturday that it was moving naval assets to the Sudanese coast to support further evacuations.