CAIRO (AP) — The U.N. migration agency warned Tuesday that humanitarian efforts in Sudan's war-torn North Darfur region could grind to a halt unless immediate funding and safe delivery of aid are secured.
“Despite growing need, humanitarian operations are now on the brink of collapse,” the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said in a statement. It added: “Warehouses are nearly empty, aid convoys face serious security threats, and access restrictions continue to prevent sufficient aid from being delivered.”
The IOM said more funding was needed to mitigate the humanitarian impact of the war between the Sudanese army and its rival paramilitary rapid support forces. The agency warned of “even greater disaster” if its call goes unheeded.
“Our teams are responding, but insecurity and dwindling supplies mean we are reaching only a fraction of those who need it,” IOM Director-General Amy Pope said in a statement.
The RBG's recent takeover of North Darfur's capital El Fasher has left hundreds dead and forced tens of thousands to flee reports of paramilitary atrocities, according to aid groups and UN officials. The IOM said about 90,000 people have fled El Fasher and nearby villages, making dangerous journeys along unsafe routes where they have no access to food, water or medical care.
Tens of thousands of people have arrived in overcrowded displacement camps in Tawil, about 70 kilometers (43 miles) from El Fasher. In the camps, internally displaced people find themselves in barren areas with few tents and insufficient food and medicine.
“We get little food from public kitchens here; we only get lunch,” Sohaiba Omar, 20, told The Associated Press from a shelter in the Diba Naira camp in Tawila.
“We also need a nearby source of water and toilets. Throwing waste in the open can make us sick and contract diseases like cholera,” she added.
Batool Mohamed, a 25-year-old volunteer at the camp, said: “There are too many displaced; they are also hungry. It is very difficult for people to come to us and say they cannot eat because there is not enough food.”
The violence has spread to other parts of Sudan, including Western Darfur and the Kordofan region, forcing more people to flee their homes. Some 39,000 people fled the conflict in North Kordofan between October 26 and November 9, according to IOM.
The war between the RSF and the military began in 2023 when tensions flared between the two former allies, who were supposed to oversee a democratic transition after the 2019 uprising. The fighting has killed at least 40,000 people and forced 12 million from their homes, according to the World Health Organization. However, aid groups say the true death toll could be many times higher.
