Malaria rises in Khartoum as measles outbreak hits South Darfur

Malaria cases have risen in Khartoum state over the past week, while a major measles outbreak in South Darfur has highlighted widening gaps in routine vaccination amid Sudan’s war.

Sudan’s Federal Emergency Operations Centre said malaria cases increased particularly in Ombada, Khartoum and Omdurman. It reported declines in cholera, dengue fever, heatstroke and hepatitis cases in most states.

The Health Ministry said eight states have been affected by rain and floods this year, covering 30 localities, with authorities providing medicines for cholera, diarrhoea and malaria.

The ministry also said mobile laboratories had been deployed to Blue Nile to strengthen disease surveillance amid deteriorating conditions and overcrowding among displaced people.

Measles outbreak

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) reported 12,042 measles cases across six locations in South Darfur supported by the World Health Organisation between November 2025 and July 2026.

In a post on X yesterday, MSF recorded 7,676 cases in Nyala, according to MSF. Children under five made up around two thirds of patients, with nearly 8,000 treated, including 2,090 infants under one.

MSF said the outbreak reflects the disruption of vaccination services and displacement caused by the war. It recorded 6,018 children who had never received a measles vaccine, while the vaccination status of 2,019 patients was uncertain.

The organisation said 1,990 patients also had malaria, while 335 were suffering from severe malnutrition. It reported 58 deaths.

“A child battling measles, acute malnutrition & malaria all at once has little left to fight with,” MSF said.

The organisation warned that although the current wave has receded, unvaccinated children in displacement camps and remote areas remain at risk.

“This wave in South Darfur has passed, but the next one is coming,” MSF said.

‘Health services under pressure’

In a press release last week, MSF warned that wider cuts to humanitarian health services are putting additional pressure on remaining facilities. The organisation reported that support had been withdrawn from more than 45 general healthcare centres in Central Darfur by May.

“Closing a clinic does not remove a single patient,” said Sebastián Traficante, MSF emergency coordinator in the Darfur region. “It sends them on to the next facility instead: later, after a longer and more expensive journey, and often in a more serious condition.”

Muhammad Ibrahim, MSF head of mission in Sudan, said the war was driving growing health needs while funding cuts were reducing available services.

“War is driving Sudan’s needs; funding cuts are shrinking the response,” Ibrahim said. “When funding disappears from other health services, clinics close, patients have fewer places to go, and pressure shifts to the facilities that remain, including ours.”