Unicef warns 825,000 children trapped in Sudan battle
"We cannot turn a blind eye to this hell on earth," said Sheldon Yett, the UN children's agency representative for Sudan, demanding an end to the conflict. The Sudanese army has been fighting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) for almost two years, and the town of El-Fasher in North Darfur is under siege.
"An estimated 825,000 children are trapped in a growing catastrophe in and around El-Fasher," said Yett, adding that more than 70 children have been killed or maimed this year.
"With these numbers reflecting only verified incidents, it is likely the true toll is far higher, with children in a daily struggle to survive," he said.
In North Darfur, more than 60,000 people have been displaced in the past six weeks, adding to the more than 600,000 displaced — including 300,000 children — since the war started in April 2023.
The war between General Abdel Fattah Al Burhan's army and Mohamed Hamdan Daglo's RSF has claimed tens of thousands of lives and driven 12 million people from their homes.
A few weeks ago, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and the UN World Food Programme suspended their work in a huge displaced persons camp in Zamzam, just south of El Fasher.
Unicef, however, continues to operate there and in the city itself, but food supplies are expected to run out within weeks.
"Unicef delivered ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF), and other lifesaving supplies to Al Fasher three months ago, but these stocks are now depleted," Yett said. "Repeated efforts by UNICEF and partners to deliver more supplies have been unsuccessful given threats from armed fighters and criminal gangs."
Agence France-Presse
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Zawya
2 days ago
- Zawya
Ethiopia launches groundbreaking UN initiative to prevent child wasting
The Federal Ministry of Health, in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and World Food Programme (WFP), officially launched the Joint UN Initiative for the Prevention of Wasting (JUNIPr) in Ethiopia. The initiative aims to accelerate national efforts to prevent child wasting—a severe and life-threatening form of malnutrition that affects more than 11% of Ethiopian children under five. The four-day Co-Creation Workshop, taking place in Adama Town from 17–20 July 2025, marks the first step in a five-year multisectoral initiative to design, test, and scale evidence-based interventions to prevent wasting in children aged 0 to 18 months. JUNIPr is supported by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and is being piloted in Ethiopia, Mali, and Bangladesh. JUNIPr builds on the Global Action Plan on Child Wasting and the newly released 2023 WHO Guidelines, focusing on: Evidence generation through robust research led by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI); Development of locally tailored intervention packages grounded in the realities of Ethiopian communities. Systems strengthening across health, food, water/sanitation (WASH), social protection and other sectors. Policy influence at national and global levels to ensure that wasting prevention becomes a public health priority. UNICEF and WFP representatives also emphasised the importance of coordinated multisectoral efforts to prevent malnutrition. Over 40 participants are attending the workshop, including representatives from regional health bureaus, multiple line ministries, academic institutions, UN agencies, NGOs, and technical experts across key sectors. The workshop includes in-depth discussions, problem analysis, policy mapping, and breakout sessions to begin shaping a comprehensive prevention package. The next stage will include in-depth context analysis, data review, and a second national workshop in early 2026 to finalize the intervention package. Ethiopia's experience will serve as a model for other countries seeking to address wasting through a systems-based, collaborative approach. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO) - Ethiopia.
Sharjah 24
3 days ago
- Sharjah 24
World urges action as Gaza faces famine
UN issues 'worst-case scenario' warning The United Nations' Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) has warned that Gaza is nearing a 'worst-case scenario famine.' The agency cited escalating starvation, malnutrition, and disease as critical issues, emphasising that without immediate intervention, widespread deaths could follow. Donors and international partners continue to press for increased aid amid worsening conditions.
Zawya
6 days ago
- Zawya
Sudan: You can run – but we will find you, militias warn terrified civilians
'People told me multiple times that when they were fleeing from Zamzam [displacement camp], armed people would threaten them while they were in flight, saying sure, 'Flee, go to that place, run here, run there, we will follow you, we will find you',' said Jocelyn Elizabeth Knight, a Protection Officer for the UN refugee agency, UNHCR. Briefing journalists in Geneva, Ms. Knight described speaking to one traumatized child at a UNHCR shelter, whose experience mirrors that of countless other youngsters across the nation. 'A tiny boy told me, 'You know, during the day things are okay here, but I'm afraid to go to sleep at night in case the place where we're living is attacked again'.' Forced into squalor In Darfur in western Sudan, many people uprooted by violence gather in disused public buildings with few essentials to water and sanitation. Meanwhile, new displacement and attacks on civilians continue within Darfur and neighbouring Kordofan region, UNHCR warned, in communities 'that are already devastated and have been subjected to unspeakable atrocities'. The ongoing fighting has also severely constrained humanitarian access and disrupted aid delivery for over two years. With seasonal rains underway, many roads will be impassable for months, further complicating the delivery of aid, the UN agency noted. The persistent insecurity has also impeded farming, deepening deprivation in areas at risk of famine or already experiencing famine-like conditions. Latest UNHCR data indicates that more than 873,000 Sudanese refugees have fled Darfur and crossed into Chad, which now hosts the largest number of registered Sudanese refugees since the start of the conflict. One in three people in eastern Chad is now a refugee. Deadly disease In addition to heavy fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and their former allies-turned opponents – the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitaries – that began in April 2023, civilians now face a fast-spreading and deadly cholera outbreak. 'Cholera has swept across Sudan with all the states reporting outbreaks,' said Dr. Ilham Nour, Senior Emergency Officer with the UN World Health Organization (WHO). She noted that since last July, nearly 100,000 cases have been reported. Lives on the line The highly contagious disease spreads rapidly in unsanitary conditions. As of early August, 264 cases and 12 deaths have been identified at Dougui refugee settlement in eastern Chad hosting Sudanese arrivals from Darfur. Surrounding villages have also reported suspected cases, while others have emerged in Treguine settlement, one of many UNHCR camps in eastern Chad that host Sudanese refugees. Help to contain the disease is urgent, insisted UNHCR's Dossou Patrice Ahouansou, Principal Situation Coordinator for Eastern Chad. 'We still have more than 230,000 refugees at the border in very difficult situation,' he said. 'Without urgent action including enhancing access to medical treatment, to clean water, to sanitation, to hygiene and most important, relocation from the border, many more lives are on the line.' As part of the response and to prevent new cases, the UN agency has suspended the relocation of refugees from border points. UNHCR is seeking $130 million in flexible funding to provide life-saving aid to an estimated 800,000 people in Darfur. In addition, the UN agency will respond to the cholera outbreak and relocate 239,000 Sudanese refugees from the Chad-Sudan border. Unexploded weapons alert Meanwhile, the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) confirmed fears that unexploded ordnance from ongoing battles are killing and maiming non-combatants who are unaware of the extent of the danger. 'The sad reality of this ongoing conflict is it is not happening in rural areas, it's mainly happening in urban areas, in the areas which are highly populated,' said Mohammad Sediq Rashid, Chief of UNMAS Sudan. Last week, six minefields were confirmed in Khartoum and three of them contained anti-personnel landmines - the first time this has been reported - he told journalists in Geneva. 'Contamination is on the roads, in homes, in schools and airstrips, medical facilities, humanitarian bases,' the UNMAS official continued. 'This is a population [that] is largely unaware of the dangers that are waiting for them…this problem is only growing every day.' Spotlight on Sudan In a briefing from Port Sudan for New York-based correspondents on Friday, Edem Wosornu, OCHA 's advocacy director, called for the international community to continue putting the spotlight on the war-ravaged nation, both from a funding and advocacy perspective. Ms. Wosornu had just returned from Khartoum, where she said the destruction was absolutely devastating. 'It was a decimated city – Khartoum which was once buzzing with life [was] almost a ghost town... I have never seen anything like this before in my almost quarter-of-a-century service to the United Nations.' Pocket change plea With the humanitarian plan for Sudan only 23 per cent funded, Ms. Wosornu noted that OCHA is not asking for a lot – only 55 cents per person per day. 'Where we have access, we are able to assist. Where we have safety and security assurances, we are able to assist. Where we have enough supplies and funding, we are able to assist,' she said. The only real solution to the world's worst humanitarian crisis is lasting peace, according to Ms. Wosornu. Therefore, OCHA and other partners continue to negotiate with the Rapid Support Forces in addition to the internationally recognized Sudanese military Government. 'We need this [humanitarian] pause desperately…The people are asking for an end to the war that has killed, maimed and led to significant destruction of life and livelihood.' Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN News.
