The conflict between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has thrown the country into chaos, escalating across all of Sudan’s eighteen states. Khartoum, the capital, lies in ruins, while the RSF’s capture of the vital supply hub, Wad Madani, has further cut off civilians from essential external aid. Health systems have collapsed, and rampant violence, especially against women and girls, has worsened the humanitarian crisis. With famine looming, over two million Sudanese face starvation by fall, as reported by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF).
International warnings have done little to alleviate Sudan’s descent into famine, described as potentially the worst in four decades. Despite these escalating concerns, the war has been dubbed the world’s “forgotten war,” as aid has been slow to arrive. UN humanitarian coordinator Clementine Nkweta-Salami emphasized the urgent need for global intervention, but relief has largely failed to materialize.
Civilian life has been shattered, with basic services disrupted by the war, especially by RSF forces. Attacks on homes, infrastructure, and health facilities have displaced millions, with current estimates of over ten million people being uprooted, though the real number could be higher. Around 80% of the country’s hospitals have been rendered unusable, leaving 15 million people without essential healthcare. The deteriorating conditions have fueled the spread of diseases such as malaria, cholera, and measles, while thousands suffering from conditions like HIV and tuberculosis are left untreated.
Sexual and gender-based violence has surged, particularly by RSF forces, creating what CARE International’s Chief Humanitarian Officer, Deepmala Mahla, called a “war on women.” Women and girls, especially among the displaced, have been subjected to widespread assaults, including abduction and rape.
The conflict’s ethnic dimension has also intensified, with the Masalit tribe facing targeted violence from Arab militias and RSF forces. In El Geneina, 540,000 Masalit have been driven from their homes through campaigns of murder and torture.
Sudan’s conflict has severely exacerbated an ongoing man-made famine. The disruption of agriculture, combined with climate change and the deliberate obstruction of food aid, has created a catastrophe. Experts estimate that up to 2.5 million people could die from starvation by the end of the summer. The UN estimates that 750,000 people are currently at risk of famine, with 26.5 million more facing food insecurity. In some refugee camps, as many as thirteen children die daily from malnutrition.
Sudan, once one of East Africa’s major agricultural producers, has seen its breadbasket regions turned into battlefields. Fields lie abandoned, machinery unused, and harvests rot in the wake of ongoing violence. Aid workers have described dire conditions in refugee camps, where families live under makeshift tarps, surviving on meager rations of grains and legumes that lack essential nutrients. Despite the severe hunger crisis, the Sudanese government continues to deny the existence of famine in these camps.
The situation is increasingly desperate, with displaced families fearing for their children’s survival. “We urgently need food, clean water, good shelter, and medical care,” one displaced mother of five in Darfur told humanitarian workers, echoing the needs of millions of Sudanese caught in the conflict.
