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Like all future mothers, Berekhti Burro dreamed of bringing a new life to the world in a safe place, with love and care at home to give her baby the best start.
But Burro, nine months pregnant, was forced to flee heavy fighting near her home in Humera, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia, and walk for hours in the scorching sun to the safety of neighboring Sudan. .
Now the 27-year-old sits with her husband in their new home; a makeshift shelter in the fast-growing tent city of Um Raquba refugee camp, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) from the border.
With the delivery of your baby at any time, you only have one thought; What will become of your son?
“It’s all I think about, about day and night,” Burro told AFP.
“I’m very afraid of giving birth here. What if she gets sick or needs an operation? What will I do then?”
She is not alone. UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, estimates that there are more than 700 pregnant women among the new refugee arrivals.
– Thousands of refugees –
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize last year, unleashed a military campaign on November 4 against Tigray’s dissident leaders, accusing them of attacking federal military camps and trying to destabilize their government.
Hundreds of people are reported to have died and thousands of refugees have fled to neighboring Sudan. Fighting continues, and the Ethiopian army on Sunday warned civilians to flee the key city of Mekelle ahead of an all-out assault.
Sudan’s government is already burdened by its own economic problems and dire poverty, but authorities immediately sought to prepare camps.
The number of people arriving is overwhelming.
Some 36,000 Ethiopians have already arrived, according to the Sudan refugee commission, but the United Nations warns that the number could rise to 200,000 in a few months.
“Sudan is receiving more new refugees per day than most European countries accept in a year,” Jan Egeland, director of the Norwegian Refugee Council, one of the aid agencies that provides support, said on Sunday. “We must help all those in need.”
Conditions are harsh; a mother, nine months pregnant, lost her baby in Um Raquba “due to lack of services,” said Massimo Diana, UNFPA director in Sudan.
“No woman should have to go through this,” Diana said in a statement. “We are working to ensure that services are available to save lives.”
– Basic clinic –
The Um Raquba camp once housed refugees who fled the Ethiopian famine of 1983-1985 that killed more than a million people, but was closed 20 years ago.
Now it has reopened, with a makeshift clinic set up in an old building.
“We can only do check-ups at this clinic,” said midwife Nawal Adel, who has examined several pregnant women, who she says are “fatigued and lacking proper nutrition.”
The clinic provides basic medical care, and doctors treat patients suffering from illnesses such as malaria and dysentery, exacerbated by the refugees sleeping outdoors with limited hygiene facilities.
“Delivery would be very difficult here,” Adel said.
There are also fears of Covid-19, although no cases of coronavirus have been reported among the refugees.
Aid workers worry about conditions in the crowded camp.
“We don’t even have a proper building to provide adequate medical care,” said Mohamed al-Moatasem, Um Raquba’s doctor.
“Most drugs are especially lacking in life-saving ones, such as antibiotics and antimalarial drugs.”
– ‘I can’t go back’ –
In a makeshift shelter, Berekhti Calaio rocks her crying son, who was born less than a month ago.
“I struggle to feed my baby because I have not eaten well for over a week and I cannot afford to buy milk,” Calaio said.
The UN is providing kits with basic supplies to help mothers deliver safely, while doctors say several pregnant women have been taken to local hospitals.
Despite the conditions, Berekhti Burro says she knows she made the right decision to flee Ethiopia.
“I know that I cannot go home to Tigray and that it is much safer here, despite the lack of food, water or adequate health facilities,” he said.
“I still want to deliver my baby in a clean and safe place. All I want is for him to be healthy.”
