Camp residents: health conditions deteriorating

Camp residents from North Darfur camps Rwanda, Argo and Dali complained about the deteriorating health and humanitarian conditions in the camps, in an interview with Radio Dabanga on Friday October 5. The residents claim the deterioration is caused by the security authorities’ refusal to allow humanitarian organizations access to the area since last September. A camp activist told Radio Dabanga that North Darfur’s security authorities denied both local and foreign humanitarian organizations (such as WFP, Doctors without Borders and the Red Crescent) access to the area. The security situation caused the deterioration of the health and humanitarian conditions in the camps, according to the activist. As a result, the camps are suffering from food and medicine shortages. The activist noted that displaced people have not received food rations over the past three months. Newly displaced families More than 200 families, mostly consisting of women and children, arrived to Tawila from East Jebel Marra last week, the activist added to Radio Dabanga. The families arrived from the areas of Timo, Tity, Goz Dour, Argo Tubou, Kunjar north and south and east Fanga. He described the health of the newly displaced families as ‘tragic’ and explained that they are living in the open without food, medicine or shelter. The activist emphasized the newly displaced have not received any assistance since their arrival to Tawila and appealed to local and foreign humanitarian organizations to provide assistance as soon as possible. In addition, he called upon the state’s security authorities to immediately grant access to humanitarian aid organizations to enter the area.