Hospital refuses to treat East Darfur political detainees with COVID-19

According to the Central Committee of Sudan Doctors (CCSD), five of the officials and political activists who have been detained in East Darfur since October 26 have fallen sick with COVID-19. The only hospital in the vicinity equipped to treat coronavirus patients refused to admit them, citing the non-approval from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) command.

In a statement yesterday, the doctors reported that five of the people being held in the East Darfur state prison in Ed Daein following the military coup of October 25, have contracted COVID-19, and “have not received any medical consult or treatment”.

The coronavirus patients are Bashir Ibrahim, Director of the East Darfur Ministry of Health, Jauda El Sayer, Director of the state Ministry of Finance (diabetic), Mustafa Bakheet, Director of Financial and Administrative Affairs at the Ministry of Finance, El Sir Jalal, Head of the East Darfur branch of the National Umma Party (suffering from diabetes, hypertension, and cholecystitis), and Mualla Mohamed, an employee in the social development sector.

They were reportedly sentenced to three months in prison, according to the emergency measures announced by coup leader Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan on seizing power.

As the state health care facilities are not equipped to treat COVID-19 patients due to a lack of intensive care facilities and oxygen, an emergency team from the state Ministry of Health tried to transfer them to the United Arab Emirates funded Mohammed Bin Zayed Field Hospital in the neighbourhood, but the hospital administration refused to admit the sick detainees, because the East Darfur RSF militia command withheld its approval.

The CCSD further reported that the joint military forces in Khartoum prevented wounded demonstrators from being admitted to the hospital of the Sudan Armed Forces in Khartoum during the anti-coup protests on October 30 “in a clear violation of basic human rights”.

The Sudan Doctors Committee holds “the Military Coup Council commanders and affiliated forces and militias across the country [..] fully responsible for civilians abducted. Especially, civilians with chronic conditions who should “receive the required treatment and care promptly”.