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The humanitarian community in Sudan is facing critical and intensifying operational challenges in North Darfur State, driven by the forced and large-scale displacement of civilians away from established infrastructure and humanitarian services. These challenges have severely disrupted existing humanitarian operations and exponentially increased the vulnerability of hundreds of thousands of people.
The current mass displacement – particularly from Zamzam, Abu Shouk, and other displaced camps – has pushed an estimated 400,000-450,000 people toward Tawila, areas surrounding Jebel Marra, and further. These population movements are increasingly fluid, unpredictable, and fueled by ongoing hostilities and fears of a broader offensive on El Fasher. The situation is further compounded by rising levels of food insecurity, with displaced populations increasingly cut off from supply chains and assistance, placing them at heightened risk of epidemic outbreaks, malnutrition and famine.
The humanitarian community is facing multiple operational challenges, preventing us from responding appropriately.
Despite our repeated appeals, humanitarian access to Al Fasher and surrounding areas remains dangerously restricted. The UN and NGO actors must be granted immediate and sustained access to these areas to ensure life-saving support can be delivered safely and at scale. Proximity-based humanitarian assistance must be delivered and sustained through already established infrastructure, which is far better equipped to respond comprehensively and effectively. Preserving access to these systems is critical to prevent further forced displacement and to ease the burden on already overstretched areas like Tawila and surrounding host communities.
The humanitarian system is currently overstretched. We urgently call on donors to provide flexible, front-loaded funding through mechanisms such as the Sudan Humanitarian Fund. This funding is critical to support first responders, mobilize life-saving supplies, and sustain emergency response operations.
The scale and gravity of reported violations, including direct attacks on IDPs and humanitarian personnel, are unacceptable. Civilians must never be a target. Forced displacement must never be a precondition for accessing life-saving aid.
Call to Action:
To the parties to the conflict: We call on all parties to the conflict to respect International Humanitarian Law and allow safe, sustained, and unimpeded humanitarian access to civilians in need. Civilians must be protected, and humanitarian workers must be allowed to carry out their work without threat or obstruction.
To donors: Your immediate support is critical to continue mobilizing resources and capacity for this emergency response. We call for exceptional, rapid funding support to maintain the humanitarian response in North Darfur.
The humanitarian community stands committed to respond to this crisis with urgency.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA).