HIBAPRESS
A new report by UN Secretary-General António Guterres observed a worrying deterioration in the food situation inside the Tindouf camps during the period from October 31, 2024, to September 30, 2025, warning of the possibility of a serious humanitarian crisis, especially among children and women of childbearing age, as a result of worsening malnutrition and reduced aid.
Unprecedented spread of anemia among Sahrawi detainees. Paragraph 66 of the UN report stated that the results of a survey conducted in May 2025 showed a significant increase in rates of acute malnutrition and stunting within the camps, reaching 13.6% and 30.7% respectively, compared to 10.7% and 28.8% in 2022, confirming a clear deterioration in the health of the population. The report also revealed an unprecedented spread of anemia among the Sahrawi detainees, as the rates exceeded the critical threshold of 40%, reaching 68.8% among women of childbearing age and 65.3% among children under five years of age, compared to 53.5% and 54.2% respectively in 2022, which is a dangerous indicator of the health collapse inside the camps. Corruption and poor distribution of aid inside the Tindouf camps. Guterres pointed out that these figures reflect deteriorating humanitarian conditions, exacerbated by the diversion of international aid from its original goals, and the weak monitoring of its distribution, in light of the decline in support provided by international donors. In an attempt to contain the crisis, the report explained that the UNHCR, UNICEF, and the World Food Programme launched a joint five-year strategy aimed at combating stunting, wasting, underweight, and anemia, with a focus on improving food security within the camps. According to the report, this coincided with escalating social tension in recent months inside Tindouf, due to corruption and the poor distribution of aid, as the leadership of the Polisario Front is heading towards investing in the construction of luxurious and fortified headquarters instead of improving the conditions of the population, in a stark contrast between the reality of poverty and daily misery experienced by the detainees, and the extravagance surrounding the leaders of the Front.
