Humanitarian organisations call for urgent interventions in Sudan as crisis deepens
Since the war erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and their associated militias in April 2023, tens of thousands of civilians have been killed and more than 12 million forced to flee their homes – around 3.5 million as refugees in neighbouring countries.
The ongoing fighting in Sudan is deepening the humanitarian crisis in the country with humanitarian organisations warning that urgent action that genuinely commits to the protection of civilians, guarantees aid workers the operational space they need and aligns the warring parties with humanitarian law is needed.
Speaking while briefing the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) bosses told the council that the poly-crisis has affected every sector, from health and nutrition to water, education and protection.
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Since the war erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and their associated militias in April 2023, tens of thousands of civilians have been killed and more than 12 million forced to flee their homes – around 3.5 million as refugees in neighbouring countries.
UNICEF’s Executive Director Catherine Russell said children are bearing the brunt of the violence with the alarming report submitted to the fund depicting grave violations against children, including killings, sexual violence and forced recruitment into armed groups.
“Children in Sudan are enduring unimaginable suffering and horrific violence. The last time I was in Sudan I met with families and children who are living through this nightmare. Their stories are heartbreaking – and demand immediate action,” Russell said.
Child rights violations
Between June and December 2024 alone, more than 900 cases of gross child rights violations were recorded, with 80 per cent involving killings or maiming.
She recounted abhorrent testimony of rape, warning that an estimated 12.1 million women and girls and increasingly men and boys are currently at risk of sexual violence, an 80 per cent increase from last year.
“The data only gives us a glimpse into what we know is a far larger, more devastating crisis,” she said.
At the same time, she noted that more than 770,000 children are expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition this year, many in areas cut off from humanitarian relief.
“Without lifesaving aid, many of these children will die,” Russell said.
She urged the UN Security Council to pressure all parties to allow unimpeded humanitarian access, especially through key border crossings.
On his part, MSF Secretary-General Christopher Lockyear described the war in Sudan as above all a "war on people” that cannot be allowed to continue to be waged with shameless disregard for civilian lives.
Indiscriminate bombings
He said the Sudanese Armed Forces have repeatedly and indiscriminately bombed densely populated areas as the Rapid Support Forces and allied militias unleashed a campaign of brutality, marked by systematic sexual violence, abductions, mass killings, the looting of humanitarian aid and the occupation of medical facilities.
“Both sides have laid siege to towns, destroyed vital civilian infrastructure and blocked humanitarian aid,” he told the council.
The organisation provides medical care in 11 of Sudan's states, on both sides of the conflict, according to humanitarian principles.
Its teams in Sudan have warned of alarming levels of malnutrition in many areas, while infectious and vaccine-preventable diseases are rising.
“The coming rainy season underlines the urgency of ensuring that people in war-torn areas receive food and medical supplies,” he said.
Humanitarian organisations based in Sudan have been struggling to gain access to the people due to obstructions by the warring parties and a lack of accountability, resources and leadership.
The council heard that despite the dire need, humanitarian organisations face severe challenges in delivering aid.
This is because bureaucratic and administrative obstacles, as well as fluid frontlines, have made access unpredictable. Humanitarians are increasingly at risk of being extorted, attacked and killed.
"While statements are made in this chamber, civilians remain unseen, unprotected, bombed, besieged, raped, displaced, deprived of food, of medical care, of dignity. The humanitarian response falters, crippled by bureaucracy, by insecurity, by hesitation, and by what threatens to become the largest divestment in the history of humanitarian aid," Lockyear said.
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