Sudan has fallen into chaos.
The fighting began on April 15, and is reportedly between Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the country’s de facto leader and head of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), and Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, widely known as Hemeti, who leads the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
The U.S. military conducted an emergency evacuation of over 70 U.S. personnel stationed in Sudan.
Thousands of Americans who are still trapped in war-torn Sudan were warned Sunday that they will have to “shelter in place” while the US works to get them out.
Most of the US citizens remaining in Sudan are aid workers or Sudanese Americans, according Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA) said in a recent appearance on ABC’s This Week.
Watch:
The World Health Organization (WHO) has reportedly warned of a “high risk of biological hazard” after fighters seized a central public laboratory with samples of infectious diseases, creating an “extremely, extremely dangerous” situation.
Dr. Nima Saeed Abid, the WHO’s representative in Sudan, addressed reporters in Geneva, Switzerland, via video link.
Abid said technicians were unable to secure the samples before fighters took control of the laboratory.
The troops reportedly “kicked out all the technicians from the lab,” according to Abid.
The central public health lab housed samples of smallpox, measles, cholera, polio, and other dangerous, highly infectious diseases.
It’s unclear which one of the fighting parties seized control of the lab.
“There is a huge biological risk associated with the occupation of the central public health lab… by one of the fighting parties,” Abid said.
From Reuters:
Speaking to reporters in Geneva via video link from Sudan, the WHO’s representative in the country, Nima Saeed Abid, said technicians were unable to gain access to the National Public Health Laboratory to secure the materials.
“This is the main concern: no accessibility to the lab technicians to go to the lab and safely contain the biological material and substances available,” he said, declining to specify which side had seized the facility.
Fighting erupted between the Sudanese armed forces and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitaries on April 15 and has killed at least 459 people and injured 4,072, according to the WHO’s latest figures. Abid said this was an undercount, adding that he had seen two bodies in the street himself in recent days.
The clashes have paralysed hospitals and other essential services, and left many stranded in their homes with dwindling supplies of food and water. The WHO has reported 14 attacks on health facilities since the clashes began and is relocating its staff to safety.
Abid said he was transferred from Khartoum to Port Sudan on Monday as part of a large convoy that drove for 30 hours through the desert.
The United Nations humanitarian office (OCHA) has been forced to cut back on some of its activities in parts of Sudan due to intense fighting.
