Drone strikes in Sudan cripple power, water and fuel networks, hindering aid delivery

In the weeks leading up to the UN briefing, drones repeatedly struck power stations, water pumps and fuel depots across Sudan, leaving large areas without electricity or clean water. A hospital just outside Khartoum lost power because it has no generator or solar panels, forcing the suspension of dialysis for 25 patients. Health facilities are reporting difficulty maintaining lifesaving services, and markets and displacement sites have also been hit, adding to the overall strain on civilian life.

Fuel shortages have produced kilometre‑long queues in Khartoum, and tuk‑tuk drivers waiting several days for a fill have lost multiple days of income. The shortage has stranded hundreds of aid trucks, preventing the movement of food, shelter kits and medical supplies. The World Food Programme reports that its convoys have been hit seven times this year, resulting in loss of life and loss of food stocks. Bureaucratic hurdles on permits further delay operations, even as the UN humanitarian community coordinates with NGOs to keep aid flowing.

Severe rainfall deficits have left farmers in Darfur and Kordofan without rain, adding pressure to already strained food supplies and prompting people to move in search of food. Millions remain displaced by the war, and severe acute malnutrition now exceeds the emergency threshold in many parts of the country. The UN cites funding cuts and other constraints as major obstacles to its priority of saving lives, while continuing to work with partners to deliver nutrition, shelter and medical assistance to those most in need.