Famine risk stalks south of Khartoum
A Sudanese mother holds her malnourished child amidst a parched landscape. A distant aid station offers a glimmer of hope.
Areas around the south of the Sudanese capital Khartoum are at high risk of famine, the World Food Programme warned Tuesday, calling for an immediate international response.
Laurent Bukera, WFP's Sudan representative and country director, said the UN agency had found "severe" levels of hunger in Jabal Awliya, a town around 40 kilometres (25 miles) south of Khartoum.
Bukera was speaking after returning from Khartoum State, where WFP opened a new office in Omdurman, a part of greater Khartoum.
"The needs are immense," he told a press briefing in Geneva, speaking from Port Sudan.
"We saw widespread destruction, limited access to water, healthcare and electricity, and a cholera outbreak. In parts of the city, life is returning -- but many neighbourhoods remain abandoned, like a ghost city.
"Several areas in the south of the city are at high risk of famine," he said.
"The international community must act now -- by stepping up funding to stop famine in the hardest-hit areas and to invest in Sudan's recovery."
Sudan's regular army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been locked in a battle for power since April 2023. The RSF lost control of Khartoum in March.
Now that WFP has access to the area and is able to make regular aid deliveries, the agency said it was doing everything it could to bring the local population back from the brink of famine.
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Bukera said "the level of hunger, destitution and desperation" found in Jabal Awliya was "severe, and basically confirmed the risk of famine".
The war has killed tens of thousands of people and created the world's largest hunger and displacement crises.
Bukera said that with people expected to return to heavily damaged areas like Khartoum, the pressure on already over-stretched resources would intensify.
"WFP is deeply concerned, and meeting basic needs -- especially food -- is critical and urgent," he said.
Famine has been declared in five areas across Sudan, including three displacement camps near El-Fasher in the southwest.
It has been all but confirmed in El-Fasher itself, where aid agencies say a lack of access to data has prevented an official famine declaration.
Across the country, nearly 25 million people are suffering dire food insecurity.
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