A displaced family settles in Tawila after fleeing fighting in Al Fasher, North Darfur.
This article is published in association with United Nations.
After 500 days of siege, the city of El Fasher in Sudan’s North Darfur has become an epicentre of child suffering, with malnutrition, disease and violence claiming young lives every day, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Wednesday.
Around 260,000 civilians – including 130,000 children – remain trapped in the area’s main camp for internally displaced people, enduring desperate conditions without aid for more than 16 months.
The Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has been battling forces of the military government for control of Sudan for over two years, has cut off all supply lines.
RSF militia have been besieging the city since May last year and it is the last urban area still under government control.
“We are witnessing a devastating tragedy – children in Al Fasher are starving while UNICEF’s lifesaving nutrition services are being blocked,” said Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director.
Deadly violence
Reports this week point to yet another mass-casualty incident, with seven children reportedly killed in an attack on Abu Shouk camp for internally displaced people, on the outskirts of El Fasher.
Since the start of the siege in May 2024, more than 1,100 grave violations have been verified in El Fasher alone, including the killing and maiming of over 1,000 children.
Meanwhile, at least 23 children have been subjected to rape, gang rape, or sexual abuse. Others have been abducted, recruited, or used by armed groups, said UNICEF.
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Health and education facilities have also come under sustained attack, with 35 hospitals and six schools struck, killing and injuring many, including children.
Aid blocked
Meanwhile, the UN aid coordination office (OCHA) warned Wednesday that the already dire situation in North Darfur continues to worsen.
“Blocking humanitarian access is a grave violation of children’s rights, and the lives of children are hanging in the balance,” Ms. Russell said, reiterating UNICEF’s call for immediate and full access to El Fasher.
The toll on children is catastrophic, the agency suspension of medical services due to depleted supplies has left an estimated 6,000 children suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) without treatment, UNICEF said.
Without therapeutic food and medical care, these children face an extremely high risk of death. News reports indicate at least 63 people, mostly women and children, died of malnutrition in just a single week.
UNICEF continues to call for unimpeded humanitarian access for the delivery of therapeutic food, medicines, clean water, and other essentials.
Cholera outbreak
The siege is colliding with Sudan’s worst cholera outbreak in decades. More than 2,400 deaths have been reported since July 2024.
In overcrowded camps around Tawila, Zamzam and El Fasher, children weakened by hunger are now especially vulnerable to cholera and other deadly waterborne diseases.
“Children must be protected at all times, and they must have access to life-saving aid,” said Ms Russell.
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