Sudan: 8 Million Displaced in a Year of War

Conflict between forces led by Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo erupted on April 15, 2023

One year ago, on April 15, 2023, conflict erupted in Sudan between troops, loyal to Sovereign Transitional Council president and de facto head of state Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan, and his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also nicknamed “Hemetti,” commander of the Rapid Support Force (RSF).

Conflict and violence has spread from Khartoum to other provinces, with the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) estimating the death toll at more than 14,790. UN human rights chief Volker Türk said the situation could get worse, given that the groups are now arming civilians.

“The Sudanese people have undergone unspeakable suffering during the conflict, which has been characterized by indiscriminate attacks in densely populated areas, ethnically motivated attacks, and high levels of conflict-related sexual violence. The recruitment and use of children by the conflicting parties is also deeply disturbing,” explained Türk.

More than 8 million people were displaced from their homes during the year, and nearly 18 million people were severely food insecure. Among them, 14 million are children. A catastrophic situation, compounded by the fact that more than 70% of hospitals are no longer functioning.

According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), about 8.9 million children are acutely food insecure, nearly 4 million children under the age of five are acutely malnourished, including 730,000 with severe acute malnutrition, potentially fatal.

Türk’s main demand is to allow access to aid without politicizing it to try to stop a humanitarian crisis that seems endless.