MSF fires employees after abuse allegations

TT

Published 14.18

 

Sudanese refugees who have made it to Chad since the war in Sudan broke out. The image is an archive image. Photo: Sam Mednick/AP/TT

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said on Monday that it was firing 18 employees after “serious allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse.”

In total, there were 59 cases of abuse allegations against Sudanese female refugees in neighboring Chad, according to an internal report that AP has seen. In some cases, underage girls have been offered food in exchange for sexual acts, for example.

MSF is one of the largest employers and aid organizations in eastern Chad, and the information that has emerged suggests that the abuses have been more widespread than previously reported.

The ongoing war between government forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has driven millions of Sudanese people to flee, many of whom have fled to Chad.