A refugee camp in Chad. Image by Henry Wilkins/VOA, via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain).

Since April 2023, Sudan has been locked in a devastating conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), two rival military factions whose struggle for power has plunged the country into a large-scale humanitarian crisis. Millions have been displaced, civilian infrastructure has been destroyed, and humanitarian access remains dangerously limited.

The armed conflict in Sudan seems to be one of the world's most forgotten civil wars. The reigning silence surrounding this conflict plunges the population into daily turmoil.

While the International Organization for Migration (IOM) reports that over 10 million people have been displaced internally, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) estimates that nearly 15 million people have been displaced, and half of Sudan’s population urgently needs humanitarian aid. Many are seeking refuge in overcrowded shelters, unfinished buildings, or open areas with minimal food and water.

Refugee crisis spills across borders

Sudan’s collapse is not a domestic catastrophe — it’s a regional crisis. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that the conflict has driven over 11 million people to flee into neighboring countries such as Chad, South Sudan, Egypt, and Ethiopia. Refugee camps in these areas are facing immense pressure, with limited resources to support the influx of displaced people.

The massive movement of people is putting pressure on already fragile neighboring states and creating long-term risks for health, education, and security in the region.

Families often arrive with nothing but the clothes on their backs, seeking safety after walking for days or weeks through treacherous terrain.

The devastating impact of the war

In urban centers like Khartoum, residential areas have been bombarded, hospitals targeted, and infrastructure destroyed. According to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), numerous hospitals have shut down due to damage or lack of supplies, while others are overwhelmed by the number of injured civilians.

In the Darfur region, where memories of past atrocities remain fresh, fighting has escalated dramatically. Human Rights Watch and the BBC have documented ethnically targeted killings and widespread looting in towns like El Geneina, a city in West Darfur, in the greater Dar Masalit region of Sudan, where thousands of civilians have been killed or displaced.

The impact on children has been particularly severe. UNICEF reports that over 14 million children are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance. Of these, at least 4 million are suffering from acute malnutrition and face life-threatening food insecurity.

School closures have disrupted education for millions of children, and many schools are now being used as shelters. In some areas, UNICEF reports that children are dying at alarming rates from malnutrition and disease.

Additionally, incidents of gender-based violence, exploitation, and abuse have increased among displaced women and girls.

Difficulties in delivering humanitarian aid

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) estimates that over 25 million people in Sudan now require humanitarian assistance. However, insecurity and the ongoing conflict have made aid delivery extremely difficult. Roads are often blocked, aid convoys are attacked, and humanitarian warehouses have been looted or destroyed.

MSF has reported armed robberies against its medical staff and facilities, while the World Food Programme and other aid agencies face severe logistical challenges. The UN's 2024 Sudan response plan remains critically underfunded, with less than 20 percent of the required funds received as of mid-year.

While Sudan’s crisis continues to escalate, it has received limited coverage in international media, and Sudan’s humanitarian collapse raises a difficult question: Why is the world ignoring Sudan?

Part of the answer lies in global attention fatigue. Sudan's conflict has been overshadowed by multiple simultaneous crises — from the war in Ukraine, the escalation of Israel's war on Gaza, tension between China and Taiwan, and other global incidents.

The Deutsche Welle compares Sudan’s situation to other underreported crises, emphasizing how editorial bias and resource prioritization affect which stories reach international audiences.

But there’s also a more profound, more uncomfortable truth: humanitarian suffering in Africa, the lack of Western geopolitical and economic interests in Sudan, contributes to this silence.

Despite numerous diplomatic efforts, ceasefires in Sudan have repeatedly collapsed due to deep mistrust among the warring factions and persistent external interference. A UK-led conference in London recently failed to establish even a basic contact group for peace talks, as primary Arab mediators like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE could not agree on a unified approach, underscoring the fractured international will that is hampering negotiations.

Meanwhile, attempts at a ceasefire are swiftly undermined by both the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces. Both sides in Sudan’s war use social media for propaganda and recruiting, while journalists face threats, censorship, and attacks that block access to reliable news.

In many cases, fighting starts again just hours after a deal is made. There is no trusted group or country that both sides will listen to, and some foreign governments are supporting different sides in the war.

Without strong and united international pressure, each ceasefire becomes just another empty promise. Peace is hard to reach when there is so much mistrust and outside influence.