Yellow fever outbreak in Darfur kills at least 32
(BNO News) A previously unknown disease which has claimed more than 30 lives in Sudan’s troubled Darfur region this month has been identified as yellow fever, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday. Preparations for a mass vaccination campaign are now underway. The outbreak was first detected early this month when a number of people in the central and southern regions of Darfur became ill and eventually died. Sudanese media said the victims suffered from a number of symptoms, including diarrhea, vomiting, and bleeding from both the mouth and nose. Tarik Jasarevic, a spokesman for the World Health Organization (WHO), on Tuesday said it had been informed by Sudan’s Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) that the outbreak is being caused by yellow fever. Since the first week of October, a total of 84 suspected cases, including 32 deaths, have been reported in the districts of Azoom, Kass, Mershing, Nertiti, Nyala, Wadi Salih and Zalingei.
Further Reading: http://wireupdate.com/yellow-fever-outbreak-in-darfur-kills-at-least-32.html
Humanitarian agencies urge South Kordofan access
(DW) A humanitarian crisis looms amidst fighting in South Kordofan state in Sudan. Aid agencies are urging the UN and other bodies to pressure Khartoum into allowing the urgent delivery of humanitarian aid. Fighting between Sudan’s army and rebels in South Kordofan has displaced thousands of civilians and created a humanitarian crisis. Aid agencies are calling on the UN, the Arab League and the African Union to exert pressure on the Sudanese government in Khartoum so that it permits humanitarian aid to be sent to the region. “The needs in South Kordofan are significant and we are working very hard to see that we are able to access those areas as soon as possible,” said Challis McDonough, spokesperson for the World Food Program (WFP) in East and Central Africa. Khartoum has cited security concerns as one reason for severely restricting the activities of foreign aid agencies in South Kordofan and Blue Nile. These are two states in which SPLM-N insurgents operate.
Further Reading: http://www.dw.de/humanitarian-agencies-urge-south-kordofan-access/a-16343207
Renewed airstrikes in East Jebel Marra
(Radio Dabanga) Several areas in East Jebel Marra have been exposed to airstrikes by the Sudanese Air Forces (SAF) on Tuesday October 30, witnesses told Radio Dabanga. Witnesses told Radio Dabanga that an Antonov plane started shelling the areas of Kunjara, Sunduga, Karvala and Tardona at around three o’clock on Monday night. The shelling reportedly continued for an hour and a half. They added that five bombs were dropped in the area of Kunjara and ten bombs in the areas of Sunduga, Karvala and Tardona. They said that the continuous SAF shelling of areas in East Jebel Marra is not just aiming at killing and displacing people, it is also aiming at destroying the people’s livelihood (farming, cattle and water sources), the witnesses added to Radio Dabanga from East Jebel Marra.
Further Reading: http://www.radiodabanga.org/node/37737