Cholera, dengue outbreaks reported in Eastern Sudan amid conflict

Eastern Sudan is facing an outbreak of cholera and dengue fever amid thousands of people sheltering in crowded camps amid deadly fighting between the country’s military and a rival paramilitary force.

As reported by the UN health agency on September 26, 162 people suspected of having cholera were admitted to hospitals in the Qadarif province and other areas along Sudan’s border with Ethiopia. Out of those, 80 cases have been confirmed, with 10 people having died of cholera, a bacterial infection linked to contaminated food or water, the VOA Africa reported.

Sudan has been pulled into chaos since mid-April, when rising tensions between the military and the powerful paramilitary group exploded into open warfare in the capital, Khartoum, and other areas across the east African nation.