Cholera cases are surging across Darfur as Sudan’s death toll from the disease tops 3,000, the WHO has said.
The bacterial outbreak, spread through contaminated food and water, has now touched all 18 states after starting in Kassala last July.
WHO has launched a vaccination campaign in North Darfur targeting 406,000 people, responding to the “alarming” rise in cases and deaths, officials said.
As of Sunday, Darfur reported 12,739 infections and 358 deaths, affecting more than half of its localities since May, the agency said.
Access to adequate health care remains severely constrained, complicating efforts to contain the outbreak amid ongoing civil war conditions.
Sudan has been engulfed in conflict since April 2023, when clashes between the General Abdel Fattah al Burhan’s army and Rapid Support Forces erupted in Khartoum.
The war has killed at least 40,000 people, displaced 12 million, and left millions facing famine and limited access to basic services.
Both warring sides have faced accusations of atrocities, including ethnic cleansing, extrajudicial killings, and sexual violence against civilians and children.
WHO warned that increased population movements are accelerating cholera’s spread, as displaced communities often lack clean water, food, and medical care.
Across Sudan, more than 113,600 cholera cases have been recorded, with a 2.7% fatality rate—well above the 1% threshold considered manageable.
The UN health agency stressed urgent action is needed to contain the outbreak before it deepens Sudan’s humanitarian catastrophe further.
