By Michelle Nichols
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The conflict in Sudan has triggered the “most extensive and devastating humanitarian crisis globally” as rival factions besiege towns and impede aid deliveries, senior aid officials informed the U.N. Security Council on Thursday. The conflict erupted in April 2023 amidst a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the lead-up to a transition to civilian rule. The United Nations projects that over 30 million people, nearly two-thirds of Sudan’s population, will require assistance this year.
Christopher Lockyear, head of MSF (Doctors Without Borders), remarked, “The Rapid Support Forces, the Sudanese Armed Forces, and other conflict parties are not only failing to safeguard civilians – they are actively exacerbating their plight.” The RSF refutes allegations of obstructing aid or harming civilians, attributing such actions to rogue elements. The RSF has pledged to investigate accusations and hold perpetrators accountable. Similarly, the SAF denies impeding aid or causing harm, with Sudan’s U.N. Ambassador Al-Harith Idriss Al-Harith Mohamed affirming the government’s national strategy for civilian protection and disputing any unaddressed concerns raised by Lockyear in private discussions.
FAMINE, CHILD ABUSE
Famine has gripped at least five locations in Sudan, where approximately 1.3 million children under five reside, as revealed by Catherine Russell, head of the U.N. children’s agency UNICEF, to the Security Council. Russell cautioned, “Over 3 million children under five are at immediate risk of deadly diseases, such as cholera, malaria, and dengue, due to a collapsing healthcare system.” Sudan’s U.N. ambassador mentioned the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s recent confirmation of food stability in the country. Russell also highlighted the distressing statistics concerning child abuse, with hundreds of boys and girls falling victim in 2024, including infants under the age of one.
“The reported figures provide only a glimpse into the broader, more severe crisis,” Russell emphasized, citing a database compiled by Sudan-based organizations aiding sexual violence survivors. Lockyear disclosed that MSF teams had assisted 385 sexual violence survivors in 2024, a majority of whom, including children under five, were victims of rape, often by armed individuals. Nearly half of the survivors were assaulted while working in agricultural fields, illustrating the targeted brutality faced by women and girls. A U.N. investigative mission released a report in October highlighting alarming levels of sexual abuse by the RSF and its affiliates. The RSF has committed to probing allegations and bringing perpetrators to justice.
In January, the U.S. established that members of the RSF and allied militias had committed genocide in Sudan.
(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
