Why Darfur is now the center of Sudan’s power struggle and humanitarian crisis

Analysis Why Darfur is now the center of Sudan’s power struggle and humanitarian crisis
On April 11, armed groups reportedly linked to the RSF launched a deadly assault on the city of Al-Fasher, Zamzam, and another displacement camp called Abu Shouk, forcing tens of thousands to flee. (AFP)
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Updated 28 April 2025

Why Darfur is now the center of Sudan’s power struggle and humanitarian crisis

Why Darfur is now the center of Sudan’s power struggle and humanitarian crisis
  • In Al-Fasher, women are dying in childbirth, children collapse from thirst, and supplies have all but vanished
  • Two decades after the world pledged “never again” in Darfur, survivors of latest violence say history is repeating itself

LONDON: A haze of red dust hangs over the cracked roads of Al-Fasher. Children stumble through the rubble-strewn outskirts, barefoot and silent, their faces taut with exhaustion. A woman collapses beside a water container, her two toddlers clinging to her scarf.

Nearby, a man holds a torn piece of cardboard with the word “Zamzam” scrawled in charcoal — a word that no longer means refuge. The camp it refers to, once one of the largest displacement sites in Sudan’s North Darfur, has been ravaged by violence.

On April 11, armed groups reportedly linked to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces launched a deadly assault on the city of Al-Fasher, Zamzam, and another displacement camp called Abu Shouk, forcing tens of thousands to flee.

According to preliminary reports from the UN and humanitarian agencies, more than 400 civilians — including women, children, and up to a dozen aid workers — may have been killed in the space of three days, in attacks that also struck the nearby town of Um Kadadah.

The RSF said the camps in question were being used as bases by what it called “mercenary factions.” It also denied targeting civilians and accused its rivals of orchestrating a media campaign, using actors and staged scenes within the camp to falsely incriminate it.




Preliminary reports from the UN and humanitarian agencies said over 400 civilians — including women, children, and up to a dozen aid workers — may have been killed in the space of three days, in attacks that also struck the nearby town of Um Kadadah. (AFP)

The assault sent shockwaves throughout the region. More than 400,000 people fled, many of them to already overwhelmed towns like Tawila. Others disappeared into the hills of Jebel Marra, carrying only what they could hold. Zamzam is now under RSF control.

“It has been completely overrun — killing, raping, burning, and taking people hostage. No one remains unless they are prisoners,” Altahir Hashim, a human rights advocate who once lived in Zamzam, told Arab News.

Now based in the UK, Hashim monitors desperate voice messages sent by survivors still in hiding. “Every morning I hear names of the dead, pleas for food, calls for medicine,” he said. “But no one is listening.”

For many in Darfur, the violence echoes a familiar pattern — and a painful reminder of promises unkept. This April marked 20 years since the UN Security Council referred atrocities in the region to the International Criminal Court.

But for those displaced today, the anniversary feels hollow. “The killers are still free. The victims are still forgotten,” said Hashim, referring to the genocide perpetrated by the RSF’s forerunner, the Janjaweed. “We are reliving what the world said would never happen again.

NUMBERS

  • 13m Displaced persons in Sudan, including 4m who have fled abroad.
  • 150k Estimated death toll since the conflict began on April 15, 2023.
  • 30m People in need of humanitarian assistance.

“The people arriving in Al-Fasher have nothing. No shoes, no food, no blankets. Famine was already creeping through Zamzam before the attack — now it’s an open wound.”

Although the Sudanese Armed Forces have recently made headway against their RSF rivals, retaking the capital, Khartoum, in March, the center of the conflict has shifted elsewhere since erupting suddenly on April 15, 2023.

Al-Fasher itself has become the last major stronghold of the Sudanese state in Darfur region. Here, tens of thousands of newly displaced civilians crowd into schools, mosques, and courtyards.

The city, once a lifeline for aid distribution across the wider region, is now itself under siege. Forces reportedly affiliated to the RSF surround it, choking off humanitarian access and isolating the population within.




More than 400,000 people fled following the RSF assault, many of them to already overwhelmed towns like Tawila. Others disappeared into the hills of Jebel Marra, carrying only what they could hold. (AFP)

Dr. Ibrahim Abdullah Khatir, director general of North Darfur’s Ministry of Health, is among the few officials still coordinating medical efforts in the city. He described conditions as “beyond collapse.”

Khatir told Arab News: “Even pregnant women needing cesarean sections are being turned away.”

He added: “We have received reports of mothers dying in labor because there are no doctors, no medicine, no way out.”

Fuel has all but vanished from the city. Diesel prices have quintupled, halting the trucks that once delivered drinking water to outer neighborhoods. The city’s main water stations are out of service.

“Children are collapsing from dehydration,” Khatir said. “And now, our staff can’t even get to the clinics.”

Al-Fasher was never untouched by conflict, but it was a place where aid agencies could still operate and displaced people could seek help. Now, with RSF fighters reportedly deploying drones and artillery in surrounding areas, even that fragile space is crumbling.

Survivors describe the flight from Zamzam as a gauntlet of fear. Amina, a mother of four, arrived in Al-Fasher after walking for three days.

“We hid in dry riverbeds and behind trees,” she said. “My youngest is sick now — he hasn’t eaten properly in a week. There is no milk, no clean water. We are waiting for help that hasn’t come.”

Others, like 14-year-old Abdulrahman, came alone. “I lost my parents in the crowd. I don’t know if they made it,” he said, huddled beneath a tarp shared with strangers. “I just walked with people who were running.”




People who fled Zamzam camp rest in a makeshift encampment in an open field near the town of Tawila in Sudan’s western Darfur region on April 13, 2025. (AFP)

The UN children’s fund, UNICEF, has warned that more than 825,000 children around Al-Fasher are at daily risk of death due to malnutrition and a lack of clean water.

Humanitarian organizations are mobilizing aid — including 1,800 metric tons of food and 9,000 non-food kits — but with road access cut off and security deteriorating, deliveries have stalled. Several agencies say their staff remain trapped inside the city with no safe evacuation routes.

Medecins Sans Frontieres suspended operations in Zamzam earlier this year due to insecurity. Other groups have pulled back or reduced staff due to threats and attacks.

One international aid worker in Al-Fasher, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Arab News: “We’ve gone from emergency mode to survival mode. There’s nothing left to distribute. And no guarantee we’re even safe.”




UNICEF has warned that more than 825,000 children around Al-Fasher are at daily risk of death due to malnutrition and a lack of clean water. (AFP)

The violence has once again drawn attention to Darfur’s long and bloody history of displacement, exclusion, and impunity.

In the early 2000s, the region was the site of mass killings and systematic ethnic targeting. Today, many Darfuris say the same patterns are playing out again.

“This isn’t just war,” Hashim said. “This is designed to erase entire communities. To remove them, not just physically, but from the map of Sudan.”

Fatima, a local nurse working in a makeshift clinic near Al-Fasher’s central mosque, said she sees the emotional toll every day. “We don’t have proper medicine, so we clean wounds with salt water. But it’s the look in people’s eyes that haunts me. They are afraid to hope.”




The violence has once again drawn attention to Darfur’s long and bloody history of displacement, exclusion, and impunity. (AFP)

Despite urgent appeals from the UN and Sudan’s humanitarian coordinator, Clementine Nkweta-Salami, little progress has been made to secure humanitarian corridors or even a temporary ceasefire to allow aid in.

“Time is running out,” Dr. Khatir said. “We are out of water. Out of food. Out of medicine. And soon, out of time.”

Al-Fasher holds more than just strategic value; it is the historical and cultural heart of Darfur. For many here, it represents the last place left to defend human dignity.

“If Al-Fasher is lost,” Dr. Khatir said, “then the hope for Darfur is lost too.”


South Sudan hosts Israeli deputy FM but denies Gaza relocation reports

South Sudan hosts Israeli deputy FM but denies Gaza relocation reports
Updated 13 August 2025

South Sudan hosts Israeli deputy FM but denies Gaza relocation reports

South Sudan hosts Israeli deputy FM but denies Gaza relocation reports
  • The government in Juba refuted media reports that it was in discussion with Israel about relocating Palestinians from Gaza to South Sudan
  • Impoverished South Sudan has been plagued by insecurity and instability since its independence in 2011

JUBA: South Sudan on Wednesday said that Israel’s deputy foreign minister had visited for talks, after reports of plans to relocate Palestinians from the war-torn Gaza Strip.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that he would permit Palestinians from Gaza to emigrate voluntarily and that his government was talking to a number of potential host countries.
South Sudan, which is said to be one of the host countries, announced that Sharren Haskel had visited, in what it called “the highest-level engagement from an Israeli official to South Sudan thus far.”
According to a statement, Foreign Minister Semaya Kumba held “a fruitful bilateral dialogue” with Haskel that touched on “the evolving circumstances within the State of Israel,” without elaborating.
“Both parties expressed a resolute commitment to advancing stronger bilateral and multilateral cooperation moving forward,” it added.
A previous statement from the government in Juba refuted media reports that it was in discussion with Israel about relocating Palestinians from Gaza to South Sudan, calling the claims “baseless.”
The potential arrival of Palestinians from Gaza in South Sudan has sparked intense controversy both on social media and on the streets of the capital.
“We don’t accept this because these are criminals they are bringing to us. Also we don’t have land that can accommodate the Palestinians from Gaza to South Sudan,” Juba resident James Lomederi told AFP.
Another local, who asked not to be identified, said: “We will welcome them with open arms. Our borders need heavy deployment of troops, and they will help us fight anyone who wants to annex our land into their territory.”
Impoverished South Sudan has been plagued by insecurity and instability since its independence in 2011.
This year, the country saw months of clashes between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and those backing First Vice President Riek Machar.
The arrest of Machar in March fueled fears of a return to civil war, nearly seven years after the end of bloody fighting between supporters of the two men that led to around 400,000 deaths between 2013 and 2018.


How Sudan became the world’s worst and most neglected humanitarian disaster

How Sudan became the world’s worst and most neglected humanitarian disaster
Updated 13 August 2025

How Sudan became the world’s worst and most neglected humanitarian disaster

How Sudan became the world’s worst and most neglected humanitarian disaster
  • Food supplies are dangerously scarce, with famine-like conditions emerging in parts of Sudan
  • Despite a worsening situation, war-torn Sudan is largely ignored, with just a fraction of required funding secured

DUBAI: Sudan is now ground zero for the world’s largest — and most overlooked — humanitarian catastrophe.

Since fighting broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, more than 12 million people have been forcibly displaced, including 4 million forced to flee across borders, according to Refugees International. 

The vast majority are women and children, many of whom have been displaced multiple times, arriving at informal settlements with nothing but the clothes on their backs — and receiving little to no aid or protection.

“This is the largest displacement and humanitarian crisis in the world,” Daniel P. Sullivan, director for Africa, Asia, and the Middle East at Refugees International, told Arab News.

“More than half the population is facing severe food insecurity, with several areas already experiencing famine.”

Amid this deepening humanitarian disaster, Sudan is also edging toward political fragmentation. The paramilitary RSF has declared a rival administration called the “Government of Peace and Unity” across Darfur and parts of Kordofan. 

Meanwhile, the SAF has retaken Khartoum and retains control over the eastern and central regions.

Daniel P. Sullivan believes that failure to act now could result in hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths. (AFP)

Experts warn that this emerging divide could either lead to a protracted power struggle similar to Libya’s fragmentation or result in a formal split, echoing South Sudan’s independence.

Inside Sudan, the situation is rapidly deteriorating. The country’s health system has collapsed, water sources are polluted and aid access is severely restricted. Cholera is spreading and children are dying of hunger in besieged areas.

Aid groups have accused the RSF and SAF of weaponizing food and medicine, with both sides reportedly obstructing relief efforts and manipulating access to humanitarian corridors.

In East Darfur’s Lagawa camp, at least 13 children have died due to complications associated with malnutrition.

The site is home to more than 7,000 displaced people, the majority of them women and children, who are grappling with acute food insecurity.

The UN children’s fund, UNICEF, reported a 46 percent increase in cases of severe child malnutrition across Darfur between January and May, with more than 40,000 children receiving treatment in North Darfur alone.

Several areas, including parts of Darfur and Kordofan, are now officially experiencing famine.

The RSF has routinely denied targeting civilians and accused its rivals of orchestrating a media campaign, using actors and staged scenes, to falsely incriminate it. (AFP)

With ethnic tensions fueling a separate but parallel conflict, allegations of genocide are mounting once more in Darfur.

“Sudanese in Darfur face genocide,” said Sullivan. “And those in other parts of the country face other atrocity crimes including targeting of civilians and widespread sexual violence.”

Elena Habersky, a researcher and consultant working with Sudanese refugee-led organizations in Egypt, told Arab News the violence is not just wide-reaching but also intimate in its brutality.

“There is widespread cholera and famine within Sudan and the threat of the RSF burning villages, sexually abusing and raping civilians, and killing people by shooting them, burning them or burying them alive, is very much a reality,” she said.

The RSF has routinely denied targeting civilians and accused its rivals of orchestrating a media campaign, using actors and staged scenes, to falsely incriminate it.

Those who flee across borders face a new set of challenges. Sudanese refugees in Egypt often struggle to obtain residency, work permits or access to health care and education.

In Chad and South Sudan, refugee camps are severely overcrowded, and food shortages are worsening due to global funding cuts. In Libya and the Central African Republic, they are at the mercy of smuggling networks and armed groups.

“Sudanese in Egypt face discrimination and the risk of forced repatriation,” said Sullivan. “Others in Ethiopia, Uganda and South Sudan face their own risks of abuse and lack of support.”

All the while, international attention is limited. The few headlines that break through are usually buried beneath coverage of other global crises.

Despite the scale of the catastrophe, donor fatigue, budget cuts and political disinterest have left Sudanese aid groups carrying the bulk of the humanitarian response.

“It truly feels like the international community is basically non-existent or only existent in words,” said Habersky.

The country’s health system has collapsed, water sources are polluted and aid access is severely restricted. (Reuters)

“Most of the work I see being done is by refugee-led organizations, grassroots efforts by the diaspora, and community aid kitchens inside Sudan,” she said.

Groups such as the Emergency Response Rooms — local networks of doctors, teachers and volunteers — have been on the front lines. But they lack consistent funding and are increasingly targeted by both warring factions.

“Local Sudanese groups have become targets of abuse,” said Sullivan. “The most critical funding gap is in the amount of support going directly to them.”

Aid efforts are not only underfunded, but actively blocked. In areas such as Khartoum, humanitarian deliveries are hampered by bureaucratic hurdles and security threats.

“Even if aid enters Khartoum, it then faces other blocks to go to Darfur,” said Habersky. “There’s destruction of infrastructure, political infighting and looting.”

INNUMBERS

• 12m People forcibly displaced by the conflict in Sudan since April 15, 2023.

• 4m Forced to flee across borders to states such as Egypt, Chad and South Sudan.

Source: Refugees International

In February, UN officials launched a $6 billion funding appeal for Sudan — a more than 40 percent increase from the previous year — citing what they described as the world’s worst hunger crisis and displacement emergency.

The call for aid comes as global humanitarian budgets are under immense pressure, further strained by a recent US funding freeze that has disrupted life-saving programs worldwide.

Earlier this year, Tom Fletcher, UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, urged donors to answer the appeal on behalf of nearly 21 million Sudanese in need, while describing Sudan as “a humanitarian emergency of shocking proportions.”

Amid this deepening humanitarian disaster, Sudan is also edging toward political fragmentation. (AFP)

“We are witnessing famine, sexual violence and the collapse of basic services on a massive scale — and we need urgent, coordinated action to stop it.”

While some aid agencies say they have received waivers from Washington to continue operations in Sudan, uncertainty remains around how far those exemptions extend — particularly when it comes to famine relief.

The UN’s 2025 humanitarian response plan is the largest and most ambitious proposed this year. Of the $6 billion requested, $4.2 billion is allocated for in-country operations, with the rest earmarked for those displaced across borders.

However, the window for action is closing, with the rainy season underway and famine spreading.

Experts warn that unless humanitarian access is restored and the conflict de-escalates, Sudan could spiral into a catastrophe on a par with — or worse than — Rwanda, Syria or Yemen.

“There needs to be a surge in humanitarian assistance to areas of greatest need,” said Sullivan. “Diplomatic pressure must also be mobilized to urge external actors to stop enabling atrocities and to press for humanitarian access.”

The UN’s 2025 humanitarian response plan is the largest and most ambitious proposed this year. (AFP)

Sullivan believes that failure to act now could result in hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths.

Meanwhile, Habersky stressed the urgency of the situation, adding that “non-earmarked funding must be given to all organizations working to better the situation within Sudan and the region.”

“Refugee rights in host countries must be protected — we are seeing too many cases of abuse and neglect,” she added.

The stark reality is that while global attention drifts elsewhere, Sudan continues to collapse in real time. Behind the statistics are millions of lives — waiting for aid that has yet to arrive.


UN Security Council blasts parallel authority move in Sudan, calls for ceasefire and political talks

UN Security Council blasts parallel authority move in Sudan, calls for ceasefire and political talks
Updated 13 August 2025

UN Security Council blasts parallel authority move in Sudan, calls for ceasefire and political talks

UN Security Council blasts parallel authority move in Sudan, calls for ceasefire and political talks
  • Rapid Support Forces, one of the warring military factions in Sudan, says it will establish a governing authority in territories it controls
  • Council members express ‘grave concern’ that such unilateral action could worsen fragmentation of the nation and exacerbate already dire humanitarian crisis

NEW YORK CITY: The UN Security Council on Tuesday strongly rejected a recent announcement by one of the warring military factions in Sudan, the Rapid Support Forces, that it will establish a parallel governing authority in the territories it controls, warning that the move threatens the country’s territorial integrity and risks further escalation of the ongoing conflict.

The 15-member council expressed “grave concern” about the implications of such unilateral action and said it could worsen the fragmentation of the nation and exacerbate an already dire humanitarian crisis.

“The Security Council reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Sudan,” council members said in a statement, adding that any actions that undermine these principles jeopardize not only the future of Sudan but broader regional peace and stability.

They urged all parties in Sudan to immediately resume negotiations with the aim of securing a lasting ceasefire agreement and creating the conditions for a political resolution to the conflict. This process should be inclusive of all Sudanese political and social groups and lead to a credible, civilian-led transitional government tasked with guiding the country toward democratic elections, council members added.

A conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the RSF, rival military factions of the country’s military government, plunged Sudan into civil war in April 2023.

The Security Council statement highlighted Resolution 2736, which was adopted by the council in June 2024 and demands that the RSF lift its siege of El-Fasher and halt all fighting in and around the region, where famine and extreme food insecurity threaten millions.

Council members expressed “grave concern” about reports of a renewed RSF offensive there and called for unhindered humanitarian access.

On Wednesday, the UN’s high commissioner for human rights, Volker Turk, condemned a recent large-scale attack by RSF forces on El-Fasher and the nearby Abu Shouk camp for internally displaced persons, in which at least 57 civilians were killed, including 40 displaced individuals.

The attack, part of a series of assaults on the camp, has intensified fears of ethnically motivated persecution as the RSF seeks to assert control over the area. Turk highlighted the dire humanitarian conditions caused by the ongoing siege and repeated attacks, describing them as serious violations of international humanitarian law.

He also cited testimonies from survivors of previous RSF attacks, including reports of killings, widespread sexual violence, enforced disappearances and torture. He called on the international community to exert pressure to help end such abuses, and stressed the importance of ensuring that those responsible for them are held accountable to break the cycle of violence in Sudan.

The Security Council also condemned recent attacks in the Kordofan region, which have resulted in high numbers of civilian casualties. Members urged all parties involved in the conflict to

protect civilians, abide by the rule of international humanitarian law, and facilitate safe conditions for humanitarian operations to take place.

They called on both sides to uphold their commitments under the 2023 Jeddah Declaration, and to ensure accountability for serious violations of international law. Council members also urged all UN member states to avoid any external interference that might fuel conflict and instability.

The Security Council reaffirmed its full support for the UN secretary-general’s envoy for Sudan, Ramtane Lamamra, commending his efforts to foster dialogue among the warring parties and civil society with the aim of achieving a sustainable peace.


Syrian Red Crescent delivers humanitarian relief to Sweida

Syrian Red Crescent delivers humanitarian relief to Sweida
Updated 13 August 2025

Syrian Red Crescent delivers humanitarian relief to Sweida

Syrian Red Crescent delivers humanitarian relief to Sweida
  • Twenty-one trucks delivered medical supplies, food assistance and fuel to vulnerable families in the southern Sweida governorate
  • Several humanitarian organizations made contributions to the humanitarian mission, including the World Food Programme and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees

LONDON: The Syrian Arab Red Crescent delivered humanitarian relief to the southern governorate of Sweida via the Bosra Al-Sham crossing, as part of efforts to assist vulnerable families in addressing humanitarian and livelihood challenges.

Twenty-one trucks delivered medical supplies, assistance and fuel to Sweida, including food baskets, bottled water, flour, petroleum derivatives and seven kidney dialysis machines to support the health sector.

SARC received contributions from its Lebanese counterpart, the UN Children’s Fund, the World Food Programme and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the SANA news agency reported.

Separately, SARC provided humanitarian assistance to vulnerable families in several villages throughout the Sweida countryside, with support from UNHCR, the Qatari Red Crescent and the Danish Red Cross.


Forest fire sweeps through northern Morocco

Forest fire sweeps through northern Morocco
Updated 13 August 2025

Forest fire sweeps through northern Morocco

Forest fire sweeps through northern Morocco
  • Reports say the fire devastated vast areas of woodland between Bab Taza and Derdara

RABAT: A major mountain forest fire close to the tourist city of Chefchaouen in northern Morocco was spreading on Wednesday, according to media and witnesses who spoke to AFP.
The fire has officially been declared a “major” one, a source told AFP, adding that Canadair firefighting aircraft were working to contain the flames.
Details on the extent of the fire, damage, or any victims or evacuations were not available.
According to news site Le360, two Canadair planes were operating “despite strong winds” in Chefchaouen province, home to 400,000 people, including 50,000 in the provincial capital.
Le360 reported that the fire had devastated “vast” areas of woodland between Bab Taza and Derdara, and had caused significant damage to orchards and fields near Karankha, before spreading to a nearby forest.
Strong winds have been sweeping through northern Morocco for two days, fanning the flames.
“The situation is catastrophic... The extent of the material damage seems quite large,” Aziz Makhlouf, a resident of the province, told AFP by phone.
“I haven’t seen such a fire in about 15 years,” he said, adding that there had been significant efforts by the authorities to combat the fire.
Videos shared online showed a sky darkened by smoke, the glow of flames in the mountains and residents fighting against the fire with buckets of water.
Reports in Moroccan media and on social networks said that fires had also broken out near Tetouan and Tangier, two other tourist destinations in the north of the country, which has been gripped by persistent drought since 2018.
As with much of western and southern Europe, Morocco has been gripped by heatwaves this summer, compounded by the strong, hot desert winds known as chergui, which blow in from the Sahara.