After 500 Days of Siege… El Fasher’s Children Face Deadly Hunger
UNICEF: Populations are in a state of mass displacement... and the wait for aid is long.
Khartoum Highlight- UNICEF warned that After 500 Days of Siege , children in El Fasher, Sudan, are enduring severe hunger, mass displacement, and deadly violence. The agency said El Fasher — besieged since April 2024 — has become the epicenter of child suffering. With widespread malnutrition, disease, and violence claiming young lives daily.
At least 600,000 people — half of them children — have been displaced from El Fasher and nearby camps in recent months. While 260,000 civilians, including 130,000 children, remain trapped without aid for more than 16 months. Since the siege began, over 1,100 grave violations have been verified in El Fasher alone. Including the killing and injuring of more than 1,000 children. The city is experiencing severe shortages of food and medical supplies. Leaving health and education services in near collapse.
Acute malnutrition continues to spread:
More than 10,000 children have been treated for severe acute malnutrition since January — nearly double last year’s figure. Reports indicate that at least 63 people, mostly women and children, died from malnutrition in a single week. On Monday, Abu Shouk IDP Camp Emergency Room in North Darfur reported the tragic death of a family of six — two grandmothers, a mother, and three children — after consuming livestock fodder (“ombaz”) in a desperate attempt to survive. “Hunger in Abu Shouk camp has reached its peak,” the statement read.
The North Darfur Emergency Coordination Council also sounded the alarm over the worsening humanitarian crisis. Noting that volunteers themselves are collapsing from hunger and poor health while still assisting others. It reported rising child and maternal deaths from starvation and food poisoning.
Despite restrictions, UNICEF continues delivering life-saving services where access is possible. Between January and May 2025, the agency screened nearly 270,000 children under five for malnutrition nationwide. Admitted 15,839 children into treatment centers for severe acute malnutrition, and provided over 100,000 children with emergency nutrition support.
UNICEF called for unhindered humanitarian access to deliver therapeutic food, medicine, clean water, and other essentials. The agency urged the restoration and continuation of UN and partner operations in the hardest-hit areas. While stressing the need to protect civilians — especially children — and civilian infrastructure in line with international humanitarian law.
