The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) stated that women, girls, and healthcare workers in the city of El Fasher, North Darfur State, have faced extremely harsh humanitarian conditions during a siege lasting nearly 18 months. This period was marked by intense shelling, a near-total cutoff of humanitarian aid, and a widespread collapse of health services.
The Fund explained, in testimonies gathered from women displaced from the city, that health facilities were knocked out of service due to repeated attacks and the exhaustion of medical supplies. This forced pregnant women to give birth without any specialized medical assistance, while survivors of sexual violence were left without healthcare or psychological support.
The UNFPA noted reports of births occurring on roadsides due to extreme exhaustion, hunger, and the inability to reach health facilities, describing these scenes as “heartbreaking and horrifying.”
According to the Fund, medical staff were forced to use primitive means to perform surgeries and treatments, often working outside of operating rooms. Additionally, staff members donated their own blood to patients in the absence of medical supplies, even as the health facilities themselves were being subjected to shelling.
