The violent fighting in Sudan’s struggle for power confines many civilians indoors and though rendered immobile, many are scrambling to escape. The world being a global village, many Kenyan students, are among civilians either confined indoors or struggling to flee the fighting.
Omar Salat, an Arabic studies student at Sudan International University in Khartoum who recently managed to flee the raging fighting between the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Response Force says fighting in residential areas, has made civilians struggle to cope.
“There is acute shortage of food, water, electricity, fuel, and the hospital system is almost collapsing,” said Salat.
Sadly, he adds, with the risk of being crossfire victim, civilians are bearing the brunt of the fighting.
“People can’t get out of houses and risk getting shot by either of the rival armed forces who not only accuse each other non-observance of the ceasefire but making residential areas a theatre of war,’’ he said.
Salat says it saddens that despite international bodies trying to negotiate peace and ceasefire the bellicose warring parties can have none of that.
“Adding insult to injury, the international laws forbids hospitals and residential being war targets, the two warring factions have spared neither,’’ noted Salat.
He explained that the two were allies, during the Sudan civil war before South Sudan’s broke away.
As much as Salat appreciates that he was amongst the first 19 Kenyan student evacuees shipped in by the Kenya Air Force, tens of others are still holed in Sudan.
“Most are reading Arabic, Islamic studies amongst other students but with the airports being under artillery power and due to huge fuel shortage in the oil producing country , vehicular fares having shot through the roof ,escaping students are forced to walk many for miles on end to flee to the borders of the war-torn country,’’ said Salat .
He says though Kenya has a multiagency team to tackle the evacuation of Kenyans in Sudan, much more needs to be done to bring peace in Sudan which was the biggest country in Africa before South Sudan broke away.
“Once, Sudanese can smoke the pipe of peace, we can resume our studies,’’ said the second year Salat, adding that amidst a rapidly deteriorating humanitarian crisis as the fighting rages on many internally displaced people are suffering.
“Sadly, Sudanese have no idea when and how the power struggle of fighting will end as fighting continues amidst many made and broken ceasefires,’’ said Salat.
By Amoto Ndiewo
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