UN Official: Needs in Sudan Are Enormous

The UNHCR representative in Sudan, Christine Hambrook, described the needs in Sudan as enormous. She added, “We are talking about people dying from hunger. We have conflict, protection issues, and daily displacement. The needs are extremely huge.” Hambrook warned in a press conference in Geneva of the spread of cholera in areas hosting internally displaced persons who have been driven by violence and those coming from other countries, particularly in the states of Kassala, Al-Gedaref, and Al-Jazirah. She said, “We have witnessed very large numbers of cholera cases in Kassala. Kassala is important to us as it hosts a large number of refugees, but also internally displaced persons. So far, we have 119 cholera cases in three refugee sites in Kassala. Unfortunately, five refugees have died due to the disease.” She pointed out that this is just one challenge among many others, highlighting that people in refugee camps and displacement sites are living in close quarters and that these sites are heavily overcrowded due to the movement of Sudanese and refugees alike from Khartoum, Wad Madani, and Darfur to Kassala.