Sudan faces 'catastrophic loss of life' without aid, CRS official says

Published: 2004-07-06

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- International aid agencies were in a "race against nature" to save some 1 million people in the Darfur region of Sudan, said a Catholic Relief Services official. A lack of adequate security has kept aid from getting into western Sudan, where thousands have been killed and more than 1 million black Africans have fled a scorched-earth campaign led by Arab militias. The Sudanese government has been under heavy pressure to disarm the militias and allow aid into the region, but the upcoming rainy season could severely hinder aid agencies' ability to deliver aid, said Dan Griffin, Horn of Africa representative for CRS. Aid agencies were "in a race against nature to keep this from falling into an absolutely catastrophic loss of life," Griffin told Catholic News Service. Griffin noted that the United Nations has predicted that 300,000 people may die in Darfur regardless of how quickly aid can be provided. "That figure can go over 1 million if we cannot provide an adequate emergency response," he said.

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