That's the sum of the situation in Northern African nation right now.

The third Sudanese civil war - which began exactly a year ago - can be held accountable for that. And more.

Fleeing Church

The Catholic Church in Sudan has almost vanished from Sudan, says the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).

It says the Khartoum preparatory seminary has closed its doors. Some seminarians escaped to neighbouring South Sudan where they continue their training.

They and the work the Catholic Church has been doing in Sudan will be missed, ACN says.

Before the war, Catholics represented five percent of the population.

Despite its tiny toe-hold in the 90 percent Sunni Muslim country, ACN says the Catholic Church "was tolerated and could run some hospitals and schools, although it wasn't allowed to openly proclaim the faith".

Safe haven no more

ACN points out that the Sudanese people have always considered the Church as a "safe haven".

When the war broke out many took refuge in churches.

However, after many missionaries and religious communities were forced to flee Sudan, parishes, hospitals and schools stopped functioning.

The bishop of Khartoum, Michael Didi, has not been able to return to his diocese. The bishop of El Obeid now lives in the cathedral because his house was partially destroyed.

Light of hope

Although the Church's continued existence in Sudan is in question, there are signs the destruction is not total.

"Sixteen new Christians were baptised in Port Sudan during the Easter Vigil and 34 adults were confirmed in Kosti.

"So we have to keep hope alive in the midst of darkness" one of ACN's Sudan project partners says.

"The Church in South Sudan is getting ready for the future by helping the Sudanese Christians to prepare for tomorrow's peace."

Tomorrow's peace

The trouble is, "tomorrow's peace" could be a while coming.

The current conflict in Sudan broke out exactly a year ago.

Over 13,900 people have died since then and over 8.1 million people have fled the country.

Armed clashes have broken out between the Sudan Army and the Rapid Support Forces (a paramilitary group).

Although both sides jointly deposed the transitional regime established after the overthrow of dictator Omar al-Bashir in 2019, they have different aims for themselves.

The two groups have been clashing to control the country's wealth, especially gold and oil.

ACN says as neither side is willing to give in, the future of the civil war looks bleak.

"The situation is dire; countless women and children, starving and traumatised, face unbearable circumstances. Action is not just necessary; it's a moral imperative to prevent further devastation" says UN refugee agency UNHCR.

CAFOD, the official aid agency of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, reports that a huge humanitarian crisis involving 25 million Sudanese is unfolding.

Help hampered

"Access constraints, security risks and logistical challenges are hampering the humanitarian response.

"Without incomes and amid disrupted aid deliveries and harvests, people cannot get food, prompting warnings of worsening hunger and malnutrition in parts of the country" ACN says.

Source

• Crux Now
• Catholic News Agency

Led by two Catholic charities, CAFOD and Caritas Social Action Network (CSAN), Share the Journey has resulted in hundreds of pairs of shoes being displayed outside the cathedral to highlight the plight of refugees.

Many of the shoes came in from refugees in Calais.

Others came from some of the 40,000 CAFOD and CSAN supporters who were inspired by Francis's message to welcome the stranger.

In a gesture of solidarity with refugees, the supporters have walked 100,000 miles between them: this is the equivalent of over four times the distance around the world.

Francis is aiming for world leaders to agree next month to two UN Global Compacts on how to assist migrants and refugees.

Share the Journey campaign focuses on five points for world leaders to include in the global compacts:

• To protect the dignity of people on the move because of war, persecution, human rights abuses, poverty and natural disaster
• Ensure special protection for the most vulnerable people
• Ensure sufficient support to countries hosting refugees
• Support family integrity through facilitating family reunification

"We are calling on the UK Government to demand that all world leaders place human dignity at the heart of the global compact agreement on refugees signed at next month's United Nations General Assembly," Daniel Hale, CAFOD's Head of Campaigns said.

"It is important to remember that most people on the move are from poor countries and most seek safety in nearby poor countries or within their own country's borders," Hale said.

The "tens of thousands who have taken part in the Share the Journey campaign illustrate an overwhelming response to Pope Francis's call for us to embrace those forced from their homes by persecution and poverty," Hale says.

Source

• The Tablet
• Independent Catholic News
• Daily Sabah
• Image: Colchester Gazette
  

The United Nations estimates 8.4 million people are on the brink of famine.

So far at least 10,000 Yemenis have been killed since the war broke out in Yemen in March 2015.

Cafod, a Catholic Aid agency, says the Saudi-led coalition's assault on Hodeida, Yemen's main port city, will have a "catastrophic impact" on the ability of relief groups to get food, medicine and other aid to vulnerable Yemeni families in urgent need of assistance.

This is because 90 percent of all Yemen's food imports pass through Hodeida.

"Any disruption to the port's operation will affect the entire country," says Giovanna Reda, CAFOD's head of humanitarian programmes for the Middle East.

"CAFOD [the overseas aid agency of the bishops of England and Wales] partner staff in the country remain on the frontline, doing everything they can to reach people who are in urgent need of humanitarian aid."

"Hunger affects 17 million Yemenis, which is 60 per cent of the population. People do not know where and when they will get their next meal."

Furthermore, Reda says millions don't have access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation.

"Last year, the country faced the largest outbreak of cholera, claiming the lives of thousands of people."

About 22 million people in Yemen, representing about three-quarters of the population, are dependent on food aid.

Almost 400,000 children under the age of five are severely or acutely malnourished. Many have died of starvation.

The UN is calling for all parties to the conflict "to meet their obligations to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure and take active steps to respect international humanitarian law."

Source

• ABC
• The Catholic Register
• Christian Today
• Image: newsweekme

My lasting memory of that time is the chaos of the situation.

There was a camp that was beginning to be established and some families were trying to set up home on the pitches that they had been allocated.

The sight of the new arrivals who had not yet been registered in the camp was particularly distressing: small groups of people sitting in whatever shade they could find, waiting to be called forward.

They all, invariably, looked completely traumatised: their faces were blank, expressionless, looking as if they were not even sure if they were still alive.

The few bundles of clothes or household utensils that were around them were now all of their worldly possessions.

"All of them, without exception, had a look of fear on their faces"

At one point I went down to one of the crossing points at the border - a swampy, marshy area covered in dense undergrowth.

From the way that the mud had been churned up, this had been the point that many of the people at the camp had left Rwanda.

There was still a trickle of people coming over: mothers, grandmothers, small children, but very few men of any age. Continue reading.

Sunday was the twentieth anniversary of the start of the Rwandan genocide. Rob Rees was Africa Programme Officer for CAFOD (Caritas England and Wales) at the time.

Source: CAFOD

Image: CAFOD

Father Edwin Gariguez, S.J., told Catholic News Service by phone from Cebu that the destruction "is beyond our capacity".

He also expressed gratitude for the help of his international counterparts from the Netherlands and Germany, and the communications staff of Caritas Internationalis, who were on their way to Leyte.

With about 600,000 people displaced by the storm, the task of getting aid to Filipinos posed a challenge in terms of coordination and the logistics.

Jesuit Brother James Lee, head of the Church that Serves the Nation, the social justice arm of the Philippine Jesuit province, said before anyone could take food and other supplies to the worst-hit areas, his organisation would send someone to make sure there was a secure way that goods get to the right destination.

"Even the military cannot pass and go to different areas," Brother Lee told Catholic News Service.

One of CAFOD's Caritas partners Rey Barnido has managed to get a message out from Tacloban via SMS and described the scene as it were a nuclear disaster zone.

"Patients are overflowing from the regional hospital in Tacloban. There are dead people everywhere. There is no water or power. Volunteers are trying to manage the disaster. It looks as if nuclear bombs were dropped," he txt'd.

However, CAFOD Director Chris Bain said the agency cannot waste time on despair or shock - and that CAFOD is focused on saving lives and helping those in such desperate need of help.

Pope Francis has echoed calls for help.

During Wednesday's Angelus with pilgrims in St Peter's Square, the pope expressed his concern and prayers for the people of the Philippines, and in particular for those who are suffering or who have died.

"I wish to express my closeness to the people of the Philippines and that region that has been hit by a terrible typhoon. Unfortunately the victims are many and the damage is enormous," he said.

He asked the tens of thousands of people gathered in the square to join him in a moment of silent prayer "for these brothers and sisters and let's try also to make our concrete help reach them."

In response to the tragedy, Pope Francis made an initial donation of $150,000 for the relief efforts through the Pontifical Council Cor Unum.

Sources

• CNS
• Independent Catholic News
• CNS
• Catholic Herald
• Image: Catholic Herald