Sudanese Refugees in Chad Face Deadly Water Crisis After Fleeing War

When a water truck finally reached the Goudrane refugee camp in eastern Chad after four bone-dry days, hundreds of Sudanese refugees rushed across the scorching sand toward it. For many families, a single filled jerrycan meant one more day of survival.

The women at the front of the crowd fell first, screaming as children climbed over them. Some dropped to their knees, losing their grip on their containers. Within ten minutes, the truck's entire supply of 6,000 litres had vanished.

Rokhia Ibrahim, a 43-year-old Sudanese schoolteacher, watched her students walk away carrying empty buckets.

"It was less than a year ago when I saw children like them die of thirst while escaping el-Fasher," she said.

A Crisis Within a Crisis

Goudrane camp, home to approximately 50,000 Sudanese refugees, is one of many overcrowded settlements across Chad's arid eastern region. According to the United Nations, more than 938,000 Sudanese refugees have crossed into Chad since the war erupted in April 2023.

Many of these refugees survive on less than half the minimum daily water supply recommended by the UNHCR. The desperate search for water has become yet another ordeal for people who already endured horrific violence before fleeing Sudan.

Ibrahim fled fighting around el-Fasher less than a year ago. During her escape, she said fighters from the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) attacked her family. The RSF, a predominantly Arab paramilitary group, has been battling the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) since the conflict began.

Ibrahim said her baby was pulled from her back and thrown to the ground. Her husband was kicked repeatedly in the head until he lost his sight.

"I watched the soldiers pour out the little water we had onto the ground," she said, her eyes filling with tears. "And now we have almost no access to water again."

Aid Organizations Stretched Beyond Capacity

At the medical clinic in Goudrane camp, young mothers line up for treatment while the camp's sole doctor faces a challenge that medicine alone cannot resolve.

"We have medicine to deal with infections and bacterial problems, but without clean water, you can't take it," the doctor told Al Jazeera.

The French humanitarian organization Solidarites International, which has operated in Chad since 2008, describes the water crisis in eastern refugee camps as one of the most urgent emergencies it has encountered in the country.

Thibault Henry, the organization's country director, said current funding falls short of ensuring safe water access for everyone. He explained that the continuous rise in needs is rapidly outpacing the capacity of existing boreholes, pipelines, sanitation facilities, and water treatment services.

Roads of Horror

As the war in Sudan intensifies, more refugees continue arriving in Chad bearing both physical and psychological wounds. At the Adre transit camp near the Sudanese border, survivors described brutal attacks by the RSF and allied armed groups.

Zahra Khamis, from el-Geneina in Sudan's West Darfur state, survived a violent rape, repeated attacks on her home, and nearly 50 days under drone attacks. Water had nearly disappeared from her neighbourhood, and food supplies dwindled after markets were bombed.

"We managed to avoid the gunfire and the drones until we got to the road," she said. "Then I saw them all — the broken and bloody bodies of everyone, from young children to old women … all killed on the road."

Khamis made it more than halfway to the border before her son was shot dead.

"We had no choice but to keep moving. So many people died on that journey," she said.

Khamis belongs to the Masalit community, an ethnic African group systematically targeted by the RSF throughout the conflict. United Nations investigators have described attacks against the Masalit in and around el-Geneina as amounting to ethnic cleansing.

"We were the ones to feel the flames of war first," Khamis said.

Fading Hopes for Return

Now in its fourth year, the war has spread across much of Sudan. The conflict has killed thousands of civilians and triggered what the United Nations describes as the world's largest humanitarian and displacement crisis.

International efforts to end the fighting have made little progress. Foreign governments accused of backing both the RSF and the SAF face increasing scrutiny over their role in prolonging the war.

For refugees struggling to survive in overcrowded camps, the hope of returning home grows dimmer by the day.

Fatne Adam, 53, has lived in Metche refugee camp in eastern Chad for more than three years. She lost both her husband and her son — shot by snipers as they fled.

"One day I would like to return to Sudan, but only when there is peace again," she said. "Nobody can tell me when that will be."

The stories of Ibrahim, Khamis, and Adam reflect the experiences of nearly a million refugees caught between a devastating war they cannot control and a humanitarian crisis that shows no sign of abating. If this reporting moved you, please share this article to help raise awareness about the ongoing suffering of Sudanese refugees in Chad.

Source: Al Jazeera English