World must do more to stop Sudan atrocities, WHO tells DW

DW (English)

WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier told DW that the humanitarian situation in el-Fasher has worsened after the Rapid Support Forces captured the city and killed civilians. He warned that Sudan is experiencing several simultaneous crises — including multiple disease outbreaks.

Transcript

00:00And joining me now is Christian Lindmayer. He's a spokesperson at the World Health Organization in Geneva.

00:06Christian, the WHO has published new details about the killings at al-Fasha's Saudi hospital.

00:12What are your findings?

00:15Well, thanks for having me, Gerhard.

00:18It must have been a horrifying effect, an attack on the hospital.

00:22And we have verified this through various sources because we don't have presence on the ground,

00:28as has no UN operation right now.

00:33There must have been at least 460 patients with their companions in this hospital.

00:38And the military, or no, not the military, I have to be correct.

00:41The forces who came, came multiple times.

00:46Over the first month, they came, or weeks, they came at least five, six times.

00:51But on that particular day, they came at least three times.

00:54They first abducted six medical staff, doctors, and nurses, killed some of the people around,

01:01came back a second time, apparently shot some people, and then came back at least a third time

01:08and literally shot everybody around in the hospital, a maternity hospital, an obstetrical hospital,

01:15and including people sheltering there.

01:18So the 460 patients and their companions, plus people sheltering there.

01:22So the casualties must be much higher.

01:24And again, the reports say they came a third time and just finished everyone off.

01:30Now, what kind of help can the injured people receive in L-Fasha and the surroundings then?

01:35That's very difficult, because access for any humanitarian material, convoys, or whatever,

01:43is difficult, if not impossible, right now.

01:46We have local NGOs and local partners still working there, but they need material, of course.

01:52They need supplies, medical supplies, anything, basically.

01:56Let's not forget.

01:56Darfur or L-Fasha doesn't only have that problem, which has been ongoing, as the humanitarian coordinator just said,

02:04for years, if not months now recently.

02:09There's a cholera outbreak, a measles outbreak.

02:12There's a dengue outbreak.

02:13There's a malaria outbreak.

02:15And we have polio now rising again.

02:17So all this on top of it, people fleeing or trying to flee if they can, being displaced, being shot on the way.

02:24Help is basically impossible right now.

02:27That's the problem.

02:28It needs peace or at least a ceasefire to get those people or guarantees for convoys, for truckloads to come in.

02:35That does not exist right now.

02:38So it's a devastating scenario.

02:41Now, some survivors have made it into a refugee camp in the town of Tawila.

02:47What are you hearing from there?

02:48So we don't have direct contact into this refugee camp, but they report from harrowing stories that I hear from other UN colleagues.

02:59The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, for example, has collected some of these evidences of ongoing rape.

03:06Similar like in your report just now, mass rapes, mass killings, and deliberate picking of boys, of men, and shooting them.

03:15So it's a devastating, horrifying scenario.

03:19And I have to repeat what the report just said.

03:23This is something we have known for months, if not years.

03:27And the international community has been more or less silent.

03:31Not the UN.

03:32We have been warning about it so long.

03:34You just mentioned it, the Sudan war has in many ways been overshadowed by the wars in Ukraine and also in Gaza.

03:43What can be done to keep the international spotlight on Sudan?

03:48Unfortunately, a scenario like this, which we had now with the hospital, sheds light on it.

03:58It's a bit of a Srebrenica effect in a very, very bad sense, unfortunately, very cynical.

04:05Let's just hope that these people have not suffered and died in vain, that this now finally gives attention.

04:11And your map just showed it.

04:13There are many international players here on the scene who have various interests and apparently also bring support to one group or the other.

04:22This must end.

04:23This must end today.

04:25But we also know that this won't end today.

04:27But the international community, those with power here, have to do their utmost to get this to stop.

04:34Christian Lindemeyer there, spokesman at the World Health Organization in Geneva.

04:41Thank you very much for this.

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