Thousands flee intensified violence in central Sudan

By Linda Bordoni

Adding to the suffering of an estimated 14 million people already displaced by the brutal civil war between the Sudanese Army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), thousands more fled their homes over the weekend as violence escalated.

It is estimated that around 120,000 people have been killed since the conflict erupted in 2023, when the Sudanese armed forces and the RSF began battling for power following the ousting of longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir.

Following harrowing reports of atrocities and war crimes committed against civilians in northern Darfur last week—after the RSF captured the city of El Fasher—witnesses and UN officials have described renewed fighting in central Sudan that has displaced some 2,000 people in the past three days.

According to the International Organisation for Migration, those displaced fled from several towns and villages in the Bara area of North Kordofan province between Friday and Sunday.

Kordofan, along with the western Darfur region, has recently become one of the epicentres of the conflict. 

Pope Leo XIV has condemned the violence in Sudan and called for an immediate ceasefire, dialogue between the parties, the opening of humanitarian corridors, and international support for relief operations.

Humanitarian agencies describe the crisis in the northeastern African nation as the world’s largest humanitarian emergency, warning that, in addition to ongoing violence, famine now threatens millions in several regions of the country.

(Source: AP and other news agencies)