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In Sudan’s besieged city of el-Fasher, Dr. Mustafa Ali Abdulrahman Ibo and his colleagues perform surgeries under harrowing conditions in the last functioning hospital. For the past nine months, the city in Darfur has endured relentless shelling, and the Saudi Hospital, where these doctors work, has become a lifeline for thousands.
Over the past month alone, 28 staff and patients have lost their lives, and more than 50 have been injured in direct attacks on the facility—making it the deadliest month since the siege began.
Surviving a Near-Fatal Attack
Dr. Ibo recalls one particularly terrifying day when an emergency caesarean was underway as shells rained down.
“The first hit the hospital’s perimeter wall, and the next struck the maternity operating room,” he said. The blast destroyed the electrical generator, plunging the team into darkness. Undeterred, they used phone torches to complete the two-hour operation in a collapsed, dust-filled room littered with shrapnel.
Dr. Khatab Mohammed, leading the surgery, described the ordeal: “The environment was no longer sterile. After ensuring everyone’s safety, we changed our gowns, cleaned the patient, and continued the surgery.” Despite the conditions, the team successfully delivered the baby and moved the mother and newborn to safety.
“It felt like our last photo when we gathered afterward,” Dr. Mohammed admitted, fearing another shell could strike at any moment.
A Hospital Under Siege
The Saudi Hospital, originally specializing in obstetrics and gynecology, now provides all medical services as the only facility with surgical capacity in North Darfur. Despite constant bombardment and severe shortages of supplies, the hospital continues to treat patients from el-Fasher and the nearby Zamzam camp, which houses 500,000 people living in famine conditions.
Medical director Dr. Mudathir Ibrahim Suleiman, 28, described the despair: “Pregnant women, children, and staff are in shock during every attack. Some are injured and pulled from rubble, yet we persevere because this hospital is their only hope.”
Darfur’s Humanitarian Catastrophe
The conflict in Sudan, which erupted in April 2023, has created the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, displacing over 12 million people. Fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has devastated Darfur, where the RSF has been accused of ethnic cleansing against non-Arab communities.
El-Fasher, the last city in Darfur under army control, has been under siege for a year. All other hospitals in the city have shut down due to the fighting. The Saudi Hospital, supported by NGOs, the UN, and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), has faced continuous attacks, including the looting of medicine and equipment.
MSF ambulances bringing patients from the Zamzam camp have also come under fire. Earlier this month, a gunman attacked a marked ambulance carrying emergency cases.
A Team United by Resilience
The hospital’s 35 doctors and 60 nurses, many of them graduates of the University of el-Fasher, remain steadfast in their mission. “We lose people every day, and parts of the hospital are destroyed, but our determination comes from the people of el-Fasher,” said Dr. Ibo.
Dr. Mohammed added, “Our souls refuse to abandon this city. We are determined to save lives—whether in a hospital, underground, or under a tree.”
Calls for Action
Aid agencies warn of an escalating maternal and child health crisis in Darfur, compounded by airstrikes and dire living conditions. The World Health Organization has called for an end to attacks on healthcare facilities, emphasizing that “the sanctity of health must be respected even in war.”
Despite the odds, the doctors of Saudi Hospital continue their life-saving work, praying for an end to the conflict and the return of peace.
