Scattered bodies in Sudan's war zones began to decompose, raising fears of public health disaster

By Adel Abdel Rahim

KHARTOUM (AA) - Dozens of bodies, both soldiers and civilians, are scattered in the streets of Sudan, particularly in the conflict zones of Khartoum, Bahari, and Omdurman, raising fears of a public health disaster.

Eyewitnesses told Anadolu on Tuesday that both civilian and soldier bodies have not been buried in Khartoum due to ongoing clashes between the Sudanese army and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and their proximity to bombing sites.

The decomposition of these bodies has begun as they have lain in the open for days and people have been unable to take them for proper burials, increasing the danger of diseases spreading in the north African country plagued by war between the two forces since April of this year.

On Sunday, The Central Committee of Health Officers, a Sudanese non-governmental organization, issued a warning about the environmental risks posed by decomposing corpses on the streets due to the war and its impact on health and the environment.

"There are problems affecting environmental health due to corpses remaining in their locations, especially since some of them have entered the stage of decomposition” the Sudan Tribune website quoted head of the Central Committee of Health Officers, Hiba al-Makki, as saying.

He urged that “this situation requires addressing them according to public health protocols in emergencies."

Last Tuesday, the London-based humanitarian organization Save the Children International reported that thousands of corpses are decomposing in Khartoum's streets due to morgues' inability to preserve the bodies and the impact of erratic power on cooling systems.

Intense clashes have been ongoing for over 100 days between the army and the RSF, particularly in strategic areas around the capital and in the western part of the country.

During the conflict, which has been ongoing since April, over 3,000 people have lost their lives, tens of thousands have been injured, and approximately 4 million people have been displaced, with most of the violence concentrated around the capital.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat in Ankara