Sudan war enters fourth year
Sudan’s civil war has entered its fourth year and reporting says the humanitarian and displacement crisis is worsening. (news.un.org) Health services are collapsing and agencies warn women and girls face severe protection crises while large numbers of families endure displacement and hunger. (who.int) Diplomacy has repeatedly failed and a Berlin conference is being convened after UN officials criticized current efforts to end the fighting. (theguardian.com)
Sudan’s war entered its fourth year on April 15 with no ceasefire, 14 million people displaced, and 34 million needing aid. (news.un.org) The fighting began on April 15, 2023, between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces after a power struggle inside Sudan’s military-led government. United Nations officials said nine million people are displaced inside Sudan and 4.4 million have fled to countries including Chad, Egypt, and South Sudan. (news.un.org) The health system is breaking down alongside the war. The World Health Organization said 21 million people now lack health services, 37 percent of health facilities are non-functional, and it has verified 217 attacks on health care since April 15, 2023. (who.int) Hunger is spreading at the same time. United Nations agencies said 21 million people face acute food insecurity, including 6.3 million in emergency conditions, and famine has been confirmed in parts of Darfur and Kordofan. (news.un.org; news.un.org) Women and girls face some of the worst risks as families flee. The United Nations said conflict-related sexual violence often happens during escape, and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights identified more than 500 victims of sexual violence in 2025 alone. (news.un.org; unrefugees.org) The war is also changing shape. United Nations and rights groups said aerial bombardment and drone strikes have increased in 2026, hitting civilian infrastructure and hospitals in places including East Darfur and White Nile state. (news.un.org; hrw.org) Diplomacy has not stopped the fighting. Officials and governments met in Berlin on April 15, with Germany, the African Union, France, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States among those involved, while United Nations relief chief Tom Fletcher said the world had “failed to meet the test of Sudan.” (hrw.org; news.un.org) Some Sudanese have started returning to places such as Al Jazirah, Sennar, and Khartoum, but aid agencies said many are going back to destroyed water systems, shattered clinics, and little shelter. Nearly four million people have returned, even as fighting continues in Darfur, the Kordofans, and Blue Nile state. (news.un.org; unrefugees.org) Three years after the first gunfire in Khartoum, Sudan is still splitting people between flight, hunger, and unsafe return. The anniversary brought another conference in Berlin, but the numbers that define the war are still rising. (news.un.org; who.int)
