News / Sudan

Sudan at 'catastrophic breaking point', UN warns

Monday, 12 August 2024 5:25 PM [ Last Update: Monday, 12 August 2024 5:25 PM ]

Sudanese people line up to register for a potential food aid delivery at a camp for internally displaced persons (IDP) in Agari, South Kordofan, on June 17, 2024. (Photo by AFP)

A UN agency has sounded the alarm over the dire conditions in Sudan, warning that the African nation is on the verge of a "cataclysmic breaking point."

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) warned on Monday that millions of people in the war-torn country were suffering from famine and floods amid the world’s largest displacement crisis caused by an internal power struggle.

“Without an immediate, massive, and coordinated global response, we risk witnessing tens of thousands of preventable deaths in the coming months. We are at breaking point — a catastrophic, cataclysmic breaking point,” the UN agency warned.

The IOM's Middle East and North Africa director said the dire conditions and restrictions resulting from the conflict between the Sudanese army under Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, led by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, were hindering international relief operations.

El-Fasher clashes raise concerns of expanding conflict in Sudan’s Darfur

Fierce clashes have erupted in and around Darfur’s El-Fasher which had been relatively calm since the war erupted in Sudan last year between the army and a rival paramilitary force.

IOM said in addition to fighting, widespread flooding since June had also displaced over 20,000 people across the country.

"Make no mistake: these conditions will persist and worsen if the conflict and restrictions on humanitarian access continue,” Othman Belbeisi said in a statement.

According to the latest data gathered by the IOM, more than 10.7 million people were internally displaced within Sudan, while 2.3 million more had fled to neighboring countries.

According to the UN, tens of thousands of Sudanese people have died since the fighting started in April 2023.

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