Over 19 million Sudanese face food insecurity due to armed conflict: WFP

An official with the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) has warned that more than 19 million Sudanese people are facing food insecurity as the ongoing armed conflict worsens the humanitarian crisis in the African country.

Mohamed Gamal, communication officer of the WFP, raised the alarm on Sunday as the months-long heavy fighting between the warring sides in Sudan has led to the disruption of water, electricity and gas supplies and severe shortages of food and medicine in many areas.

"The humanitarian situation is really dire in Sudan. Currently, there are over 19 million people who are food insecure and this situation is expected to get worse as the war continues,” Gamal said in interview with China Media Group (CMG).

“WFP is highly concerned especially for areas like West Darfur where it's currently inaccessible for our humanitarian services to reach the people who need it the most."

According to UN data, roughly half of the Sudanese population, which accounts for 24.7 million people, including 13 million children, needs humanitarian aid.

Since the fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Response Forces (RSF) broke out on April 15, almost 2.8 million people have fled Sudan, including an estimated 230,000 people who arrived in Chad.

Stressing that the WFP has been providing treatment for the wounded who entered Chad from Sudan, Gamal said, “WFP has reached over 150,000 people with its aid and established two units that are serving as hospitals to provide medical services to the ones that are affected by the war in Sudan.”

He said the WFP has brought food aid to over 1.4 million people in Sudan and aims to provide aid for 5.9 million conflict-affected people across the country this year.

Sudan violence rages as paramilitaries deny Darfur war crimes

Sudan’s capital Khartoum and its western Darfur region have witnessed another day of violent clashes, as the army and the Rapid Support Forces continued their war for control of the country.

The WFP officer, however, said the organization’s humanitarian relief efforts have been hindered as the warring parties have failed to fully ensure safety of humanitarian staff and a number of WFP warehouses have been looted.

"We urge the conflicting parties to facilitate humanitarian corridors for WFP to reach people who need its services the most," Gamal underlined.

The fighting in Sudan began in mid-April over a power struggle between army chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, who commands the RSF.

The clashes in Sudan have caused over 3,000 deaths and more than 6,000 injuries, according to figures released by the Sudanese Health Ministry.

The United Nations, the Arab League as well as many countries in the world have already urged the opposing sides to show restraint and engage in dialog to end the hostilities.

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