UN appeals for $6 billion in aid, says “Sudan is a humanitarian emergency of shocking proportions”
This picture taken on September 1, 2023 shows a view of destruction in a livestock market area in al-Fasher, the capital of Sudan's North Darfur state. The conflict between Sudan's army under General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo spread in late August 2023 to North Darfur state, with at least 27 localities burned down by the RSF and allied Arab militias, according to the Humanitarian Research Lab at the Yale School of Public Health. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)
The United Nations issued an urgent appeal for $6 billion to provide life-saving aid to millions suffering in war-ravaged Sudan and refugees fleeing “appalling” conditions. The UN’s humanitarian and refugee agencies, OCHA and UNHCR, aim to assist nearly 26 million people this year.
Sudan has been locked in brutal conflict since April 2023, with fighting between army chief Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan and his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, leader of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The war has displaced 12 million people, with 3.5 million forced to flee the country.
“Sudan is a humanitarian emergency of shocking proportions,” UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher warned. “Famine is taking hold. An epidemic of sexual violence rages. Children are being killed and injured. The suffering is appalling.”
The UN reported famine conditions in at least five locations, including displacement camps in Darfur and the western Nuba Mountains. Catastrophic hunger is expected to worsen by May, when the lean season begins.
The UN is seeking $4.2 billion to reach nearly 21 million people inside Sudan, while an additional $1.8 billion is needed to support 4.8 million refugees and host communities in Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Uganda, and other nations.
“Today, one-third of Sudan’s entire population is displaced,” UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi said, warning that millions face severe food insecurity, collapsing health systems, and an education crisis that could leave two-thirds of refugee children without schooling.
