Year of civil war in Sudan: Millions starving; faces humanitarian crisis

Khartoum [Sudan], April 16 : As Sudan marks the one-year anniversary of the civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF), aid agencies have warned that the country is on the verge of collapse and facing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, CNN reported.
Islamic Relief, a humanitarian and development agency, warned that the country is on the brink of mass famine, with young children facing the prospect of starving to death.
The situation in Sudan is dire, with over 8.4 million people, including 2 million children under the age of five, forced to flee their homes in the wake of the conflict, according to Doctors Without Borders (MSF).
However, despite these alarming figures, it has not received an adequate international response.
Islamic Relief added that only five per cent of the 2025 humanitarian response plan for Sudan has been funded, reported CNN.
The agency's country director for Sudan, Elsadig Elnour, said, "Over the past year, I've seen my country descend into violence, madness, and destruction, neglected by the rest of the world."
The conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF), has left millions of people displaced and countless civilians dead or severely injured, according to CNN.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk warned in a statement on Monday of a further escalation in violence in Sudan "as parties to the conflict arm civilians, and more armed groups join the fighting."
Moreover, since the beginning of the civil war, thousands of homes, schools, hospitals and other vital civilian structures have been destroyed.
The war has pilunged the country into a severe humanitarian crisis, creating the world's largest displacement crisis, his office said, as reported by CNN.
"Nearly 18 million people face acute food insecurity, 14 million of them children, and over 70 percent of hospitals are no longer functional amid a rise in infectious diseases," Turk added.
Earlier on Monday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that "crimes against humanity" were potentially being committed in the country, adding that recent reports of escalating hostilities in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, were a "fresh cause for deep alarm."
Over the weekend, RSF-affiliated militias attacked and burned villages west of El Fasher, leading to "widespread new displacement," Guterres said.
Moreover, the fighting continued Monday on the outskirts of El Fasher, he added.
"Let me be clear, any attack on El Fasher would be devastating for civilians and could lead to full-blown intercommunal conflict across Darfur," Guterres said.