The year 2025 brought immense suffering to Sudan, as a brutal conflict continued to ravage the nation, bringing widespread fear, destruction, and indiscriminate violence to communities across the country. This devastating period saw new mass atrocities, soaring displacement figures, and a deepening crisis of starvation, all while essential public services crumbled. Alarmingly, Sudan once again recorded the highest number of people requiring humanitarian aid globally. ## Unprecedented Suffering: War Waged Against Civilians The conflict in 2025 was characterized by systematic violations of international humanitarian law, with civilians bearing the brunt of the violence. Following an initial phase that saw major towns decimated by active fighting, the past year marked a stark escalation in the nature of warfare. This included the deliberate imposition of sieges in critical areas like Al Fasher in North Darfur, and Kadugli and Dilling in South Kordofan, which were explicitly designed to induce starvation and famine-like conditions. Communities were pushed to the brink, with markets depleted and traders attacked, forcing countless families to resort to desperate measures such as surviving on boiled leaves, animal feed, and even boiled cow skins for months. ## Mass Atrocities and Widespread Violence Beyond starvation tactics, 2025 witnessed horrific episodes of mass atrocities. Two significant events were documented in North Darfur: one in Zamzam Camp and another in Al Fasher. The latter incident, in particular, displayed chilling hallmarks of genocide, signaling a profound degradation of human dignity and safety. Every shift in territorial control was systematically accompanied by mass displacement and widespread violence against civilians. This included executions, sexual and gender-based violence, torture, arbitrary detention, looting of homes and livelihoods, severe deprivation, and forced disappearances. Tragically, more than one in ten families reported at least one missing family member, highlighting the profound human cost of the conflict. ## A Nation Displaced and Returning to Ruin The scale of displacement reached staggering levels. Over 9 million people were internally displaced within Sudan, many forced to flee multiple times, often under attack and along dangerous routes. These fleeing families sought refuge in extremely fragile, underserved, and overcrowded camps across areas like Tawila, the Nuba Mountains, and White Nile. Additionally, at least 4.4 million people remained refugees in neighboring countries, including Chad, South Sudan, Egypt, Libya, Ethiopia, and Uganda. Despite the dire conditions in displacement areas, approximately 3.5 million people returned to Khartoum and other central states, either from within Sudan or from neighboring countries, particularly Egypt. These returnees faced devastating realities: widespread destruction, completely collapsed public services, an acute economic crisis, and the pervasive threat of explosive contamination, creating an environment of extreme vulnerability. ## Collapsing Healthcare and Public Health Emergencies The humanitarian crisis was exacerbated by a crumbling healthcare system. In 2025, there were 65 documented attacks on healthcare facilities, which crippled the ability to provide life-saving treatment and care. This, coupled with the destruction of infrastructure due to escalating drone attacks that targeted schools, hospitals, and markets, led to severe shortages of water, electricity, and fuel across the country. These shortages had widespread and severe consequences for cities, hospitals, and everyday life, especially in eastern Sudan, making even basic medical care a luxury. The health situation was further compounded by a significant public health emergency: an unprecedented cholera outbreak. Over 70,000 people were infected in 2025, a direct consequence of damaged sanitation infrastructure, contaminated water sources, and the inability to implement effective public health interventions amidst the conflict. The risk of resurgence for waterborne diseases, particularly cholera, remains extremely high, especially during the upcoming rainy season, which often brings seasonal flooding. Such floods damage shelters and latrines, further contaminating water and cutting off vital roads used for trade and aid delivery, intensifying the exposure to disease. ## Obstacles to Aid and Critical Funding Shortfalls Delivering humanitarian assistance remained severely constrained throughout the year. Insecurity was rampant, with blatant obstruction of aid, political and bureaucratic restrictions, active frontlines, and collapsed routes and infrastructure making it incredibly difficult for aid to reach those in need. The targeting of humanitarian workers was relentless; 92 aid workers were killed, injured, kidnapped, or detained in 2025 alone. Local responders and community-based groups, who often served as critical lifelines in inaccessible areas, faced harassment, detention, killing, and looting, yet continued to operate under extremely dangerous conditions. Despite escalating needs, humanitarian funding reached critically low levels. Dramatic cuts from major donors, including the United States and European countries, meant the gap between required and actual funding was wider than ever. In Sudan, a staggering 60 percent of the previous year's appeal remained unfunded. Reversing this trend in 2026, where the new humanitarian appeal stands at USD 2.1 billion, is absolutely essential. Renewed global solidarity and sustained humanitarian funding are vital to ensure families caught in Sudan's war receive the assistance they desperately need to survive and begin rebuilding their lives. At the close of 2025, Sudan remained the country with the most people in need, with over 33.7 million people—more than half the population—now requiring some form of humanitarian assistance. A significant portion of these are children, whose futures are being irrevocably altered by the ongoing crisis. The multifaceted challenges of war, famine, disease, and displacement paint a grim picture, underscoring an urgent and ongoing need for international attention and support to avert an even greater catastrophe.