The last surviving inhabitants in Khartoum recounted horrific circumstances as war reached its 22nd day. Markets were still closed, many people were on the verge of running out of supplies, and imports were ceasing to arrive.
Yousif Ahmed, a shop owner and businessman in the city, recounted the desperate circumstances. He said that since the situation is “unstable,” some individuals may turn to “stealing” in order to live. “Everything is gone now, we are suffering greatly from this disaster, and all people may have to steal in a week,” he told VOA. “We may have to steal the day’s sustenance in the coming days.”
Ahmed said that because of the city’s high crime rate, companies must develop strategies to safeguard their inventory.
“As a grocery store owner, the situation is really dire. We feel unsafe since there are no commodities and that we may at any time be plundered. Today, some retailers keep their inventory in their houses.
Nearly 19 million Sudanese might experience food insecurity as a result of the war, according to the U.N. In the next six months, relief and support for refugees from Sudan are expected to cost $445 million, according to advocates.
Another Khartoum resident, Mohammed Hassan Abu Shama, said that the city’s living conditions had drastically worsened.
People have started to stockpile food since most shops are low in essentials, he told VOA. “The price of bread has doubled, and the cost of wheat has increased significantly. People desire to go outside of Khartoum, but tickets are pricey both within and outside of Sudan. Many items were damaged during this conflict; maybe, things will improve.
However, despite the unrest and in the lack of a functional government and aid agencies, Sudanese in various Khartoum areas established volunteer civic projects to aid in resolving the problem for the city’s most vulnerable residents.
Hassan Mohammed Ahmed Salih from the Jabra area described how the locals are pitching in to provide food for those in need.
The issue of a lack of flour was resolved because “we obtained quantities from some agents and distributed it to a significant number of poor citizens in the neighborhood.”
According to Ahmed Salih, the neighborhood works together to help in a variety of ways, such as by providing protection and assisting those in need of medical care.
“We are going to set up three committees to look at the health, housing, and security situations. We will endeavor to gather data, and similar to how we dealt with the wheat shortage, we will attempt to provide health and medical services by bringing in physicians and medication to all patients in the community. We will provide moral support in these situations if we are unable to.
Locals claim that things are becoming worse every day. They worry that the suffering of people will increase as long as the marketplaces are shut and aid cannot get to those stranded in the city.
