Sudan’s protracted war fuels massive displacement and shatters health services

The conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces has entered its fourth year, creating a humanitarian crisis of unprecedented scale. Over 6 million people have been forced to leave their homes inside Sudan, while at least 4.5 million have crossed borders seeking safety. Civilians are increasingly targeted in places such as markets, fuel stations and health centres, and the use of long‑range drones has expanded the reach of violence far beyond traditional front lines. The UN rights chief warned that populations in Kordofan, Blue Nile and the Darfur states face an imminent threat of further attacks and displacement.

Medical infrastructure has been hit hard by the fighting. In South Kordofan, successive drone strikes by the RSF on a kindergarten and a nearby hospital resulted in 114 deaths, including more than 60 children. A separate assault by SAF forces on Ad‑Da'ein Teaching Hospital caused at least 70 fatalities. In Khartoum, three major referral hospitals – the Teaching Hospital, the Ophthalmology Hospital and the Dental Hospital – have suffered severe structural damage. Operating rooms have been wrecked, imaging devices destroyed and whole sections of the buildings are unusable, leaving patients without essential services until urgent repairs are carried out.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called for an immediate ceasefire, an end to external meddling and a return to inclusive civilian governance. A fact‑finding mission appointed by the Human Rights Council concluded that both the SAF and the RSF have likely breached international humanitarian law, actions that could amount to war crimes. The report also noted alleged support for the RSF from actors in the United Arab Emirates, Chad, southeastern Libya and Puntland, Somalia. WHO appealed for help to restore health services, while Türk called for a ceasefire.