Explosion Near Salam Centre in Khartoum

On the morning of Thursday 16 January, an explosion broke glass and tiles in the living quarters of EMERGENCY’s Salam Centre for Cardiac Surgery in Khartoum. The explosion took place less than two kilometres from the hospital, and shrapnel was also found in the hospital parking lot.

“This is the second time in the last four months that we have felt the direct consequences,” says Matteo D’Alonzo, EMERGENCY’s hospital manager in Khartoum. “The explosion took place beyond a bridge crossing the Nile that connects our area to the area where the fighting is taking place. It broke window panes and tiles in our compound, and caused cracks in the ceiling. Some pieces of shrapnel were found outside the building.”

“No patients or staff members were injured. We work in compliance with stringent safety criteria, and our hospital is not and has never been a military target. However, the consequences of the war are also tangible for us.”

“The conflict in Sudan is currently considered the worst displacement crisis in the world, with 12 million people forced to flee their homes,” D’Alonzo continues. “Around 80% are fleeing Khartoum, the city most affected by armed clashes since the conflict started on 15 April 2023. At the same time, it represents one of the most serious humanitarian crises in the world, yet has received little attention: 30.4 million Sudanese will need humanitarian aid in 2025, about two-thirds of the country’s entire population.”[1]

EMERGENCY, present in Sudan since 2003, continues activities in Khartoum with the Salam Centre for Cardiac Surgery and a Paediatric Clinic; in Port Sudan, with a Paediatric Centre; and in Nyala, South Darfur, with a Paediatric Centre that reopened after being looted in October 2023. EMERGENCY has also opened satellite outpatient clinics for cardiac patients in Atbara and Kassala, and is working to open another in Gedaref.

[1] OCHA, Sudan Humanitarian Update (1 – 31 December 2024), https://www.unocha.org/publications/report/sudan/sudan-humanitarian-update-1-31-december-2024