Among the most vulnerable are nearly 2 million people trapped in areas that humanitarian agencies can barely reach due to active fighting, shifting frontlines, and deliberate blockades. These regions, controlled or contested by the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese Armed Forces, have become epicenters of suffering where access to food, medicine, and clean water is rapidly disappearing.
Deadly Airstrikes in South Kordofan
The crisis intensified further following a series of deadly RSF airstrikes in Kalogi, a town in South Kordofan. The Sudan Doctors Network reported that at least 116 civilians were killed in the attacks, including 46 children. The strikes represent one of the deadliest single incidents recorded in recent months and highlight the growing toll on non-combatants.
Local officials confirmed that several civilian structures were hit, including residential areas and an early childhood education center. Witnesses described scenes of devastation, with families buried under rubble and medical facilities overwhelmed by the number of casualties.
Human rights groups say the strikes demonstrate an increasingly indiscriminate pattern of violence as both sides intensify their fight for territorial control in key regions.
A War That Has Devastated a Nation
Since the conflict erupted, Sudan has experienced catastrophic losses. More than 26,000 people have been killed directly by violence, while approximately 9 million have been forced to flee their homes, creating one of the largest displacement crises globally. An estimated 30 million Sudanese now depend on humanitarian assistance to survive.
Local media reports suggest the true death toll may be far higher. When factoring in hunger, disease, lack of medical care, and conflict-related disasters, analysts estimate that as many as 150,000 people may have died over the past three years.
Entire communities have been uprooted, agricultural production has collapsed, and markets have been destroyed, leaving families unable to sustain themselves even in traditionally food-producing regions.
Aid Access at a Breaking Point
The World Food Programme has warned that despite using every available route and delivery method, access to vast parts of Sudan remains dangerously limited. Active fighting and insecurity have made regions such as el-Fasher in North Darfur, Babnusa in Kordofan, and newly captured RSF-held areas nearly impossible for aid convoys to reach.
Humanitarian organizations say the lack of access is pushing communities toward famine-like conditions. Food stocks are depleted, prices have skyrocketed, and malnutrition rates are rising sharply, especially among children and pregnant women.
Aid workers have also raised concerns about deliberate obstruction of relief operations, noting that continued restrictions could lead to irreversible loss of life if corridors are not opened urgently.
Schools and Civilian Areas Under Attack
The targeting of civilian infrastructure has further shocked the international community. Authorities in Kalogi confirmed that RSF airstrikes hit an early childhood school on December 4, killing dozens of students. The attack has been widely condemned as a clear violation of international humanitarian law.
UNICEF’s Representative in Sudan, Sheldon Yett, described the incident as a horrific assault on children who should never be exposed to the brutality of war. He called on all parties to immediately halt hostilities and allow humanitarian agencies unrestricted access to affected populations.
Medical professionals on the ground reported severe shortages of trauma supplies and staff, making it difficult to treat survivors of the attacks.
Fears of Atrocities Spreading Across Kordofan
The United Nations has warned that Kordofan risks descending into violence similar to what has been documented in el-Fasher, where reports of mass killings, sexual violence, and forced displacement have emerged since the conflict intensified.
Following the RSF’s announcement that it had captured the city of Bara in North Kordofan, at least 269 civilians have reportedly been killed in less than a month. Continuous airstrikes and ground assaults have driven thousands more from their homes, adding pressure to already overwhelmed displacement camps.
Observers fear that without urgent international intervention, the region could face atrocities on an even larger scale.
Competing Narratives, Growing Suffering
Both the RSF and SAF continue to accuse each other of responsibility for civilian deaths and humanitarian access restrictions. The ongoing blame game has done little to ease the suffering of millions caught between rival forces.
Meanwhile, essential services have collapsed across large parts of the country. Hospitals are barely functioning, schools are closed, and clean water systems have been destroyed or abandoned. In many areas, civilians rely entirely on informal networks for survival.
Hunger as a Weapon of War
Aid agencies warn that hunger is increasingly being used as a weapon. The combination of violence, displacement, and restricted access has cut off communities from food supplies, pushing already fragile populations into desperation.
Children are among the hardest hit. Severe acute malnutrition rates continue to rise, with doctors reporting children arriving at clinics too weak to walk or speak. Without immediate intervention, experts say an entire generation risks long-term physical and cognitive damage.
A Crisis With No Clear End
As the war drags on, the outlook for Sudan remains bleak. Diplomatic efforts to secure a lasting ceasefire have repeatedly failed, and fighting shows no sign of slowing. Humanitarian agencies stress that without an immediate end to hostilities and guaranteed access for aid deliveries, the death toll will continue to climb rapidly.
International organizations have renewed calls for accountability, protection of civilians, and sustained global attention to Sudan’s crisis. They warn that silence and inaction will only deepen one of the worst humanitarian disasters of the modern era.
For millions of Sudanese families, survival now depends on whether the world can move beyond statements of concern and act decisively to stop the violence and restore access to life-saving assistance.
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