Insights from the BBC, The New Arab, Reuters and ReliefWeb
The news
Nearly four million children in Sudan face acute malnutrition due to the ongoing conflict between the army and paramilitaries of the Rapid Support Forces, the head of the United Nations children’s agency has warned.
Catherine Russell told the BBC that as many as nine million children in Sudan are not getting enough to eat and it may already be too late to save some of them. The war, which started in April 2023, has limited organizations’ ability to deliver essential aid.
SIGNALS
Ongoing conflict limits relief supplies
Both warring sides prevent humanitarian aid from reaching people in need, creating obstacles such as bureaucratic hurdles, limits on entry points, lack of security guarantees, attacks on humanitarian workers, looting and telecommunications disruptions, The New Arab wrote. Russell told the BBC that while she could not confirm hunger was being used as a weapon of war, it was a “100% man-made” crisis, while the head of a UN fact-finding mission to Sudan last week said it was. It is difficult to see the situation improving ‘without an immediate ceasefire’.
Parts of Sudan are likely already suffering from famine, despite the lack of an official declaration
A famine has not yet been officially declared in Sudan, but a US special envoy to the country told Reuters that some parts have already reached that stage. With both the military and paramilitaries blocking access to data collection, the famine may never be formally declared, the International Rescue Committee said. Even if that were the case, a senior researcher at a Dutch think tank told The New Arab that a formal determination often comes when the situation on the ground has already reached the point of catastrophe. “By then, all food aid will arrive too late to save anyone in this category,” she said.
The humanitarian crisis extends beyond national borders
The consequences of the conflict in Sudan are also being felt in neighboring countries, according to a report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, with border states such as Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia and South Sudan becoming destinations for refugees. According to the UNHCR, nearly 600,000 people have fled from Sudan to Chad since early 2023, contributing to a humanitarian crisis in the country. In Egypt, the arrival of refugees adds new pressure to an already struggling economy, writes the National Center for Social Research.
