SAEDNEWS: The United Nations children’s agency (UNICEF) warned of an “unprecedented level” of child malnutrition in the war-torn region of North Darfur and called for immediate access to children and families trapped by the conflict.
The warning issued on Monday came as fighting intensified between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), with the paramilitary group continuing its eastward advance after capturing the city of el-Fasher in Darfur in late October.
The conflict, which began in 2023, has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced more than 12 million, and caused famine in several regions of Sudan — a situation the United Nations has described as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
UNICEF reported that 53 percent of the 500 children it screened earlier this month in the Um Baru area of North Darfur were acutely malnourished. One in six children was found to be suffering from severe acute malnutrition, a life-threatening condition that can be fatal within weeks if left untreated.
“When severe acute malnutrition reaches this level, time becomes the most critical factor,” UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement.
“Children in Um Baru are fighting for their lives and need immediate assistance. Every day without safe and unhindered access increases the risk of further deaths and suffering from preventable causes.”
Many residents now living in Um Baru fled el-Fasher after fighting escalated in late October. More than 100,000 people are believed to have escaped the city at that time. Those who fled reported widespread abuses by RSF forces, including killings, sexual violence and arbitrary detentions.
On Friday, a United Nations humanitarian team gained access to the RSF-controlled city for the first time in two years. Denise Brown, the UN’s resident and humanitarian coordinator for Sudan, said the city appeared largely abandoned.
“El-Fasher looked like a crime scene,” Brown said. “It was not full of people. The few we saw were living in empty buildings or makeshift camps made of plastic sheets.”
She said the UN remains deeply concerned about wounded civilians and those who may be detained. The RSF did not immediately comment.
After consolidating control over Darfur, the RSF has moved east into the Kordofan region. The group continues to besiege the cities of Kadugli and Dilling in South Kordofan, worsening hunger conditions there, according to Al Jazeera’s Hassan Razzaq.
Military operations have also forced people to flee from North Darfur and North Kordofan, leaving entire towns largely empty.
UN officials say violence has intensified during the dry season.
“Each passing day brings staggering levels of violence and destruction,” UN Assistant Secretary-General Mohamed Khaled Khiari told the UN Security Council last week. “Civilians are enduring immense and unimaginable suffering, with no end in sight.”
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for an immediate ceasefire. Sudan’s Prime Minister Kamil Idris presented a peace proposal to the Security Council calling for the disarmament of the RSF, but the group rejected the plan.
Sudan’s army chief, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, said there could be no political solution unless the RSF disarms.
“We are not speaking about a military solution alone,” al-Burhan said. “The war can end when weapons are laid down.”
