War in Sudan: more than 7 million displaced – UN

Fighting that has raged since April in Sudan between the army and paramilitaries has now displaced 7.1 million people, a UN spokesperson said on Thursday, describing “the largest displacement crisis in the world.”

The war between the head of the army, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane, and his second, General Mohamed Hamdane Daglo, boss of the much-feared FSR, extended last week to the state of al-Jazeera in the centre-east of the country, hitherto spared, approaching the town of Wad Madani which served as a humanitarian hub and refuge for previous displaced people.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), up to 300,000 people fled Wad Madani as the fighting approached. “These new movements bring the displaced population to 7.1 million,” including 1.5 million who have taken refuge in neighbouring countries, said Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General.

According to Unicef, at least 150,000 children have been forced to flee their homes in al-Jazeera state “in less than a week”.

“Our colleagues in Sudan have heard blood-curdling stories from women and children who experienced a terrible journey to reach Madani,” commented UNICEF boss Catherine Russell in a press release. “And now, even that fragile sense of security is shattered as these same children have once again been forced to flee. ”

“No child should experience the horrors of war,” she added.