Khartoum (TDI): Intensified clashes in central Sudan have forced more than 2,000 people to flee their homes in just three days, the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported on Monday, as the country’s two-year conflict continues to deepen its humanitarian crisis.
According to the IOM, the newly displaced families escaped from several towns and villages in North Kordofan’s Bara area between Friday and Sunday amid heavy fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the rival Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
North Kordofan and the western Darfur region have become the latest epicenters of the war, which has already killed tens of thousands and left millions displaced since it began in 2023. The conflict erupted after relations broke down between the army and the RSF, once allies who jointly ruled Sudan following the ouster of longtime leader Omar al-Bashir in 2019.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates the death toll at around 40,000, though aid groups believe the actual number is far higher. Nearly 12 million people have been uprooted, making Sudan home to one of the world’s largest displacement crises.
In recent weeks, the RSF has intensified its offensive across Darfur, capturing the strategic city of El-Fasher. Aid agencies say the assault killed hundreds and forced tens of thousands to seek shelter in overcrowded camps. Reports of atrocities, including mass killings and destruction of civilian areas, have alarmed international observers.
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The Sudan Doctors Network previously reported that RSF fighters attacked the town of Bara in late October, killing at least 47 civilians, among them women and children. Since then, the IOM estimates that nearly 39,000 people have fled their homes across North Kordofan, including residents from Sheikan, Ar Rahad, Um Rawaba, Um Siala, and Sakra.
Most of the displaced are moving northward toward Khartoum, Omdurman, and Sheikan, seeking safety as fighting spreads into new areas.
Meanwhile, the RSF claimed on Monday that its troops had entered Babanusa in West Kordofan “in large numbers” and were advancing toward the army’s local headquarters. Local volunteer groups confirmed that many residents had fled the area, though the exact number of displaced families remains unclear.
Read More: Thousands Flee as Sudan War Expands into Kordofan
In Darfur, the Sudan Doctors Network accused the RSF of collecting and burying bodies in mass graves in El-Fasher, allegedly in an attempt to conceal evidence of atrocities against civilians. Satellite imagery analyzed last week by Vantor and the Yale School of Public Health’s Humanitarian Research Lab appeared to show fires near a local hospital, possibly consistent with the burning of bodies.
The ongoing war has pushed Sudan to the brink of collapse, with aid agencies warning that millions face acute hunger, displacement, and violence as the fighting shows no sign of abating.
