"It's getting worse by the day"

Thursday 25 May 2023

A Jersey-Sudanese doctor is renewing his appeal for islanders to support those suffering in violence-hit Sudan – where his own young nephew was hurt by a stray bullet in the conflict.

Dr Dirby Osman and his daughter, Leila, have been raising money for the International Red Cross Committee’s Sudan Appeal.

The pair have a target of generating £5,000 to help provide urgent medical care and supplies for those affected by the conflict, and have raised more than £3,000 so far.

A crisis close to home

Dr Osman splits his time between working at a hospital in the nation’s capital, Khartoum, and with his family in Jersey.

When the war broke out on the 15 April, Dr Osman was on the island. 

When the fighting initially broke out, Dr Osman learned that his 10-year-old nephew was hit in the leg by a stray bullet. 

Pictured: Dr Dirby Osman. 

Leila, who organised the fundraiser on JustGiving, explained that all the money the pair raise will go towards "supporting hospitals in Khartoum and the surrounding areas... They've got good established networks to get the necessary supplies to people and to support refugees leaving Sudan".

She explained that a number of her extended family were living in Sudan when the violence erupted.

"Thankfully, most of them have managed to get to Egypt, but some of them were stuck in areas where the fighting was the most intense... They had to pack up and leave everything." 

Pictured: The bullet removed from Dr Osman's nephew's leg. 

Their family were not eligible for the evacuation flights which were so prominent in the headlines, meaning they had to make their own way to the Egyptian border, either on foot or by boat. 

"It's gotten worse down there if anything"

While the conflict has received less international news coverage since the end of the dramatic evacuation process, Leila was keen to stress that the crisis is far from over.

"It's gotten worse down there if anything – a lot of people are taking advantage of the anarchy."

Dr Osman reiterated that while the fighting was slowly dying down, the humanitarian crisis is ongoing.

Thousands in need of medical help

He noted that around 28 hospitals and six other health facilities in Khartoum have been taken over by militia groups – more than half of the health facilities in the city – and more than 5,000 civilians are in need of medical attention. 

He added: "They are using the hospitals as human shields, while the army shoots at them from the air.

"Food prices are more than four times what they normally are, the central medical supply is being looted and the central markets have been burned. Even if you can get out of your home, you won't be able to find anything to buy." 

"It is getting worse by the day."

DONATE...

To donate to Leila and Dr Osman's fundraiser, click HERE.