News Center- The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), UN World Food Programme (WFP) and World Health Organization (WHO) issued a stark warning on Thursday, calling for an urgent action to protect Sudan’s children from malnutrition, disease and death.

All indications point to a significant deterioration of the nutrition situation for children and mothers in war-torn Sudan. A recent analysis conducted by three UN agencies highlights that the ongoing hostilities are worsening the drivers of child malnutrition.

“Sudan is facing an ever-increasing risk of conflict-induced famine that will have catastrophic consequences including the loss of life, especially among young children. Over the coming months the situation for Sudan’s children and mothers will only worsen: the rainy season, which will cut off communities and raise rates of disease, starts in June.”

“I am profoundly distressed by the humanitarian situation in Al Fasher, where the noose of war is tightening its stranglehold on a civilian population that is under attack from all sides,” Clementine Nkweta-Salami, the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, said in a statement on Thursday. “Humanity is the first casualty of war. The news of reported casualties and human rights abuses are appalling. Families, including children and elderly people, are being prevented from leaving the city as they search for safety.

“We are receiving deeply worrying reports that medical facilities, displacement camps, and critical civilian infrastructure have been targeted by parties to the conflict. Many parts of Al Fasher have been left without electricity or water. A growing proportion of the population has limited access to basic necessities and essential services, including food and healthcare.”

War in Sudan

The fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support forces that started on April 15, 2023, continues. Sudan has become the largest internal displacement crisis in the world. Within Sudan, over 6.6 million people are internally displaced, seeking shelter in over 6,700 locations and a majority of the 1.8 million, who have fled the country, have sought refuge in neighboring nations.