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\u201cWith no viable peace in sight, the Sudanese are trapped in a humanitarian crisis of industrial proportions<\/strong>,\u201d said Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN aid coordination office, OCHA.<\/p>\n \u201cTwo out of three people need aid, that\u2019s 30 million people\u2026<\/strong>This, of course, demands a massive ramp-up of international support; what we see instead is donors pulling back funding across the world.\u201d<\/p>\n The\u00a0war between rival militaries\u00a0\u2013 the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) \u2013 began on 15 April 2023 after a breakdown in transition to civilian rule, following the overthrow of long-time President Omar al-Bashir. Heavy fighting has levelled towns and cities and claimed tens of thousands of lives.<\/p>\n At least 12.4 million people have been uprooted from their homes, including more than 3.3 million refugees.<\/p>\n Since the outset, relief workers and others including the UN human rights office, OHCHR, have repeatedly warned that sexual violence remains pervasive across Sudan.<\/p>\n \u201cOne survivor recounted that she was told, \u2018We are your men now,\u2019 before RSF fighters raped her\u00a0in front of her children<\/strong>,\u201d\u00a0<\/strong>said Li Fung, OHCHR Representative in Sudan, speaking to journalists in Geneva via video link from Nairobi.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) reiterated deep concerns about the 25 million Sudanese facing famine. \u201cTwo years of war has turned Sudan into the world’s largest hunger catastrophe and famine is spreading,\u201d\u00a0<\/strong>said Leni Kinzli, WFP Communications Officer for Sudan, also speaking from the Kenyan capital.<\/p>\n In an appeal for funding to support the UN agency\u2019s work, she testified to the value of food assistance for internally displaced people (IDPs): \u201cIt means that a father who has been torn from his home in Khartoum can feed his family of four; it means that a mother in an IDP camp in Kassala can cook a simple meal for her young daughters and so that they don’t fall into malnutrition.\u201d<\/p>\n Amid reports that the paramilitary RSF\u00a0paramilitary had taken the key Darfur town of Um Kadadah from the SAF, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) warned that attacks on healthcare personnel and facilities \u201care on the rise\u201d.<\/p>\n The past two years have seen 156 confirmed attacks on health \u201ccausing more than 300 deaths and over 270 injuries among either patients or healthcare workers<\/strong>\u201d, said<\/p>\n Dr Shible Sahbani, WHO Representative in Sudan, speaking via video link from Cairo.<\/p>\n Echoing those concerns, UN Women reported that 80 per cent of hospitals in conflict areas are no longer functioning, with maternal deaths rising \u201calarmingly\u201d.<\/p>\n A full eight in 10 displaced women and girls in Sudan now lack access to clean water, said Sofia Calltorp, UN Women Director in Geneva, highlighting the impact of deep cuts to funding for humanitarian work globally.<\/p>\nRape as a weapon of war<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Invaluable support<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Funding cuts dilemma<\/strong><\/h2>\n