1,000 weapon‑wounded patients treated in South Sudan hospitals this year - ICRC
The combined effects of conflict in South Sudan and Sudan, intercommunal violence, and severe flooding throughout the year have devastated communities and exacerbated one of the world's most protracted humanitarian crises.
Nearly 1,000 weapon-wounded patients have been treated in hospitals supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in South Sudan so far this year, the highest figure recorded since 2018.
ICRC, in a statement, said this reflects the sharp resurgence in fighting in the country, thus raising major concerns.
More To Read
- South Sudan and Somalia eye group stage in FIFA Arab Cup 2025 qualifiers
- From silence to strength: South Sudan women leaders speak out and drive change
- Garissa Referral Hospital stages surprise mass-casualty drill to gauge disaster preparedness
- MSF demands protection of civilians after deadly attack in Upper Nile State, South Sudan
- South Sudan on high alert as Marburg outbreak emerges across border in Ethiopia
- Millions of lives at risk, warn UN food agencies, as hunger crisis worsens
"Escalating violence since the beginning of the year has triggered a surge in patients wounded by gunshots, explosions and other weapons. Health facilities, especially in remote areas, are under extreme pressure, with many patients arriving after long delays that drastically reduce their chances of survival," the organisation said.
Of the figure, nearly 400 patients received surgical care this year after ICRC transferred them by air from remote areas to hospitals.
The Committee notes that the year has been particularly challenging for the surgeons who continue to operate on patients with serious leg, pelvis, or chest injuries requiring intensive treatment and, in some cases, multiple operations every day.
"The basic principle is to save lives. To save the limb. But as soon as life and limb have been saved, we broaden our perspective," said Slobodan Miroslavljev, an ICRC surgeon whose team has operated on hundreds of patients at Juba Military Hospital this year.
Over the past eight years, ICRC surgical teams have performed over 25,000 surgeries on about 5,000 people wounded by weapons.
Paul Gabriel Renze, a patient at the ICRC-supported Juba Military Hospital, a survivor of multiple shootings in the waist and both legs who the ICRC evacuated from Nagero county to Juba, where he has undergone several surgeries and continues to recover had to like many patients in South Sudan, wait several days before receiving his first medical care, further complicating the work of surgical teams.
For Renze and most patients, surgery is only one step in the long and difficult journey to recovery.
"We were eight people, and among them, I was the only one who survived. After three days, my wounds were rotting and developing maggots. The seven bodies were also rotting. Fortunately, someone passed by and saw me and immediately rushed to tell other people about me," he recalls.
Meanwhile, this year alone, more than 3,700 people received physical rehabilitation treatment at ICRC-supported centres in Juba, Wau, and Rumbek, up from 3,300 patients last year and the highest figure in a decade.
"The centres provide prosthetic limbs, crutches, wheelchairs and physiotherapy to help patients regain mobility and independence," said ICRC.
The combined effects of conflict in South Sudan and Sudan, intercommunal violence, and severe flooding throughout the year have devastated communities and exacerbated one of the world's most protracted humanitarian crises.
According to Dr Oluwafifunmi Odunowo, the ICRC's physical rehabilitation manager in South Sudan, the increase was a result of multiple factors, including the spillover effect of the conflict in neighbouring Sudan.
"We've seen a growth in the number of persons from Sudan, either refugees or returnees from Sudan, coming to access physical rehabilitation services. Globally, this year compared to last year, it's about a 40 per cent increase," he said.
Top Stories Today
