Hundreds of Thousands Flee Fighting in Sudan as Conflict Spreads to Jazeera Province

Hundreds of thousands of people have fled fighting in Sudan, according to the United Nations. The army and the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are now fighting in the previously safe province of Jazeera.

The clashes between the Sudanese military and the RSF have escalated and reached the province of Jazeera, which was previously considered safe. As a result, hundreds of thousands of people have already fled the area, as reported by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The RSF attacked the city of Wad Medani, the capital of Jazeera province, earlier this month. This week, the RSF announced that they had taken control of the city. Wad Madani is located about 100 kilometers southeast of Khartoum.

Many people are fleeing on foot to safe areas

The military confirmed the retreat and initiated an investigation. According to the UN’s IOM, up to 300,000 people have fled from the province, with many of them fleeing on foot. They have moved to safer areas in the provinces of Al-Qadarif, Sinnar, and White Nile. Some have ended up in refugee camps, while many others have found shelter in local communities.

“We fear that Wad Madani, which was once considered a safe haven for people fleeing extreme violence in Khartoum, has turned into another death trap,” said Pierre Dorbes, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegation in Sudan. Families are being separated in the chaos of renewed displacement, and older people are being left behind. The ICRC called on all parties to the conflict to ensure the protection of civilians and provide safe corridors for people to leave the city.

Food assistance partially suspended

Jazeera is known as Sudan’s breadbasket. Since the outbreak of the conflict, approximately six million Sudanese have fled to the province, mostly from the capital, Khartoum, where the fighting has been concentrated, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The total population of Sudan is approximately 45 million people.

The World Food Programme (WFP) announced on Wednesday that it has temporarily suspended food aid in parts of Jazeera. The UN organization called it a major setback for humanitarian efforts in the province. Previously, the WFP had provided assistance to 800,000 people in Jazeera, including many families who had fled the fighting in Khartoum.

Tensions between the military, led by President Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the RSF, commanded by Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, have been simmering for a long time. They escalated in April, leading to an armed confrontation. Following the escalation, many Western nations evacuated their citizens from Sudan.

The army and the RSF formed an alliance in 2021 to take control of the country through a coup but became increasingly embroiled in a power struggle.