The laboratory occupied by the army in Sudan poses a “major biological hazard” and a “major biohazard”, according to the representative of the World Health Organization in the East African country, Nima Saeed Abed. The doctor and representative of the World Health Organization have expressed serious concerns about Sudan’s National Public Health Laboratory in Khartoum – the country’s capital, where violence between two opposing internal military factions continues – at United Nations press briefing Tuesday.
Said Abed explained that the occupation forces “expelled all technicians from the laboratory.” “Now it is under the control of one of the warring parties as a military base, and this is extremely dangerous.” Inside the laboratory are samples of polio, measles and cholera, according to Saeed Abed. the Laboratory site It also indicates that it includes reference samples related to tuberculosis, malaria and AIDS.
“With the power out and no technician taking care of all of these (samples), the risk of biohazard is high,” said the WHO doctor, especially under military control. “Biological materials stored in the laboratory cannot be properly managed for medical purposes,” he added. The intergovernmental agency said it was in contact with the fighting factions but refused to reveal which side had taken control of the laboratory.
The ongoing violent conflict in Sudan I grew up last week between the country’s national army and a paramilitary force called the Rapid Support Forces. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan leads the Sudanese Armed Forces. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (AKA Hemedti) leads the Rapid Support Forces. Previously, Hemedti had mainly served as second in command to Burhan who was leading the country after the 2021 coup that toppled Omar al-Bashir. But Hemedti is now seeking to take power into his own hands. Great international interests outside the borders of Sudan also involved.
For sale now
Two of our favorite VPNs
Protect your private data
We share and access a lot of private data every day which can cause some big problems if that information falls into the wrong hands.
So far, there have been 4,072 confirmed infections and 459 deaths, according to WHO statistics. However, Saeed Abid warned that these numbers are likely to be far less than the number. He personally described seeing two bodies less than a kilometer to travel, as he moved between vehicles.
On top of the occupied lab, an emerging civil war poses other threats to public health. Many hospitals have been closed amid the fighting. A UN official indicated that there had been 14 confirmed attacks on healthcare facilities. Many hospitals have been taken over by military forces. According to Saeed Abid, only about a quarter of the health facilities are functioning at present. Next, there is a lack of electricity and clean water available due to the fighting, which in itself carries a high risk of causing or amplifying disease outbreaks. Already before the fight, Khartoum was in its throes First outbreak of dengue.