Sudan's Civil War Enters Third Year, Leaving Millions Trapped and Starving
The conflict between Sudan's regular army, known as the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has shown little sign of abating. The latest escalation in October saw the RSF capture the strategic city of Baraa in North Kordofan state, further entrenching its control over western Darfur region.
The RSF's brutal campaign in el-Fasher, which began on October 26, resulted in at least 1,500 civilians being murdered in just 48 hours. The local monitor, Sudan Doctors Network, reports that the RSF has committed "acute human rights abuses" in Baraa, with at least 47 people killed and over 4,500 displaced to surrounding towns.
The RSF's aggressive push into Darfur raises concerns about the potential for genocide, particularly given its track record of atrocities. As the conflict continues unabated, tens of thousands of civilians are trapped in el-Fasher, fleeing from RSF troops in underground trenches or trekking through the desert to reach safer areas.
The humanitarian crisis is dire, with many people risking death from thirst and hunger on their perilous journeys. The United Nations has described the situation as "terrifying," with women and girls being raped and people mutilated. The International Organisation for Migration reports that just over 33,000 people have reached nearby towns, but new arrivals face inadequate shelter and food aid.
The latest development in the conflict came on October 25, when the United States, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia – known as the Quad – met to discuss implementing a roadmap to end the war. However, the meeting yielded little progress, with the Quad agreeing to form a symbolic "joint committee" to end the conflict.
The SAF's declaration of expelling two top World Food Program officials as "persona non grata" has raised concerns about its commitment to mitigating the hunger crisis. Despite famine levels of hunger spreading across Sudan, the SAF remains under pressure to address the humanitarian situation.
With the RSF poised to attack North Kordofan's capital, el-Obeid, the conflict is entering a critical phase. The loss of this strategic city could prove disastrous for the SAF, as it operates as a key buffer zone protecting central and eastern Sudan, which remains under SAF control.
The diplomatic efforts to end the war have so far failed to bring meaningful progress or secure a basic ceasefire. As the conflict continues to escalate, the international community must step in to address the humanitarian crisis and push for a lasting peace agreement.
The conflict between Sudan's regular army, known as the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has shown little sign of abating. The latest escalation in October saw the RSF capture the strategic city of Baraa in North Kordofan state, further entrenching its control over western Darfur region.
The RSF's brutal campaign in el-Fasher, which began on October 26, resulted in at least 1,500 civilians being murdered in just 48 hours. The local monitor, Sudan Doctors Network, reports that the RSF has committed "acute human rights abuses" in Baraa, with at least 47 people killed and over 4,500 displaced to surrounding towns.
The RSF's aggressive push into Darfur raises concerns about the potential for genocide, particularly given its track record of atrocities. As the conflict continues unabated, tens of thousands of civilians are trapped in el-Fasher, fleeing from RSF troops in underground trenches or trekking through the desert to reach safer areas.
The humanitarian crisis is dire, with many people risking death from thirst and hunger on their perilous journeys. The United Nations has described the situation as "terrifying," with women and girls being raped and people mutilated. The International Organisation for Migration reports that just over 33,000 people have reached nearby towns, but new arrivals face inadequate shelter and food aid.
The latest development in the conflict came on October 25, when the United States, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia – known as the Quad – met to discuss implementing a roadmap to end the war. However, the meeting yielded little progress, with the Quad agreeing to form a symbolic "joint committee" to end the conflict.
The SAF's declaration of expelling two top World Food Program officials as "persona non grata" has raised concerns about its commitment to mitigating the hunger crisis. Despite famine levels of hunger spreading across Sudan, the SAF remains under pressure to address the humanitarian situation.
With the RSF poised to attack North Kordofan's capital, el-Obeid, the conflict is entering a critical phase. The loss of this strategic city could prove disastrous for the SAF, as it operates as a key buffer zone protecting central and eastern Sudan, which remains under SAF control.
The diplomatic efforts to end the war have so far failed to bring meaningful progress or secure a basic ceasefire. As the conflict continues to escalate, the international community must step in to address the humanitarian crisis and push for a lasting peace agreement.
...the situation is getting more and more dire by the day. i'm not surprised that the rapid support forces are committing human rights abuses tho...their track record speaks for itself 
. but at the same time, the saf's actions dont exactly make them innocent either...i mean, expelling wfp officials? that does sound like a pretty desperate move to me 
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. i'm not sure what more the quad can do tho...it does seem like theyre just going thru the motions at this point 
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. something needs to change soon or else we'll be seeing more innocent civilians die 
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Sudan has been ravaged by war for years and its heartbreaking to see innocent civilians caught in the middle 
these numbers 1500+ dead and 4500 displaced just from one city is insane how can we expect a lasting peace when there's no end in sight? 
. And then you got SAF expelling World Food Program officials, what does that say about their priorities? Are they really committed to resolving the humanitarian crisis or is this just a PR stunt? The fact remains, tens of thousands of people are dying and we're still not seeing any concrete action from our leaders 
. We need real change, not empty words or symbolic committees 
and what about all these new arrivals reachin nearby towns but cant get decent shelter n food aid? its like bein trapped in a nightmare
it's like the world is turnin a blind eye to this humanitarian crisis
the hunger crisis is real & they need 2 take responsibility 4 it ASAP 
how do you think that's gonna make a difference? they need to be puttin' in some real action, not just havin' a nice chat over coffee.
the situation on the ground is dire, with people risking their lives for food and water.
the international community must step in and push for a lasting peace agreement. The SAF's actions are concerning too, expelling World Food Program officials raises questions about its commitment to mitigating the hunger crisis... 
. The fact that the Quad met to discuss a solution, but only formed a joint committee... what's the point of that? We need concrete action now! The SAF's actions are just exacerbating the problem, I don't get why they're expelling World Food Program officials when people are starving in the first place 
it's insane what's happening in Sudan right now i mean we're talking millions of people trapped and starving like what even is that? 