Hundreds of children have arrived at a refugee camp in Sudan without their families, as violence continues to displace thousands from the city of el-Fasher in Darfur. Over the past month, more than 100,000 people have fled the region due to escalating conflict involving the paramilitary group known as the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which recently retook control of el-Fasher from the Sudanese army.
According to UNICEF, from October 26 to November 22, 2023, a total of 354 children have reached a refugee camp in Tawila, approximately 70 kilometers (43 miles) west of el-Fasher. Many of these children have lost their parents, who have either disappeared, been detained, or killed during the violence.
Humanitarian Crisis Deepens
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) reports that at least 400 children have arrived in Tawila unaccompanied. Some reached the camp thanks to extended family members, neighbors, or kind strangers who chose not to leave them alone in the dangerous conditions of the desert or el-Fasher. NRC advocacy manager Mathilde Vu described the plight of these children, some of whom arrive exhibiting signs of severe malnutrition and dehydration.
“Many children arrived with clear signs of hunger, extremely skinny. They’re so bony, dehydrated,” Vu stated. She noted that numerous children also display psychological distress, which includes becoming restless, mute, withdrawn, or experiencing nightmares. Some have even engaged in physical altercations.
The ongoing fighting began when the RSF engaged in violent clashes that resulted in hundreds of fatalities in el-Fasher, which served as the last stronghold for the Sudanese army. Since the conflict erupted in 2023, over 40,000 lives have been lost, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), while the number of displaced individuals has reached 12 million. However, aid organizations caution that the true death toll may be significantly higher.
Call for Immediate Support
Sheldon Yett, UNICEF’s representative in Sudan, described the children arriving in the Tawila camp as “bewildered, malnourished, and dehydrated.” He expressed concerns about the extreme violence these children have witnessed, saying that many have seen their mothers disappear or even family members being shot.
Despite receiving some psychological support from aid workers, many children still sleep on the ground and receive only one meal per day. Vu emphasized the urgent need for aid: “People are hungry, thirsty, they need education, they need healthcare, they need psychosocial support, and we need to give them help now and not wait for peace to come to Sudan.”
The RSF is largely composed of fighters from the Arab Janjaweed militia, which has a notorious history of violence, including a genocidal campaign in the 2000s that resulted in the deaths of approximately 300,000 people in Darfur.
Earlier this month, the RSF agreed to a humanitarian truce proposed by a U.S.-led mediation group. However, the Sudanese military stipulated that the RSF must fully withdraw from civilian areas and disarm. The urgency for humanitarian assistance remains critical as the conflict continues to unfold.
