EL OBEID, Sudan — Thousands of Sudanese civilians fleeing fighting in the Kordofan region are arriving in and around El Obeid, overwhelming shelters and increasing pressure on already scarce food, water and medical services as the country’s devastating civil war grinds on. Families escaping violence have crowded into displacement sites, schools and other temporary shelters in the North Kordofan capital, while humanitarian agencies warn that continuing insecurity is making it increasingly difficult to reach people who need assistance.
The new displacement comes as fighting intensifies across the Kordofan region between the Sudanese Armed Forces, led by Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, commanded by Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, widely known as Hemedti. El Obeid has become strategically important because it sits on routes connecting central Sudan with Darfur and other parts of the country. Civilians reaching the city have described leaving communities with little more than the possessions they could carry, adding to a population already strained by years of war and economic collapse.
Humanitarian organizations say conditions facing displaced families are increasingly severe. The International Organization for Migration has recorded repeated waves of displacement from communities across Kordofan as front lines shift, while the United Nations and aid organizations have warned of acute food insecurity, disease and inadequate access to health care in several parts of Sudan. Many families have been displaced more than once since the war began. Aid agencies have repeatedly called on the warring parties to protect civilians and allow safe, unhindered humanitarian access to communities caught in the fighting.
Sudan’s war erupted in April 2023 after tensions between the army and the RSF developed into open fighting over control of the country and plans to integrate the paramilitary force into the regular military. The conflict derailed hopes for a return to civilian government following the 2019 overthrow of longtime ruler Omar al-Bashir and the subsequent 2021 military takeover. Fighting devastated large parts of Khartoum before expanding across Darfur, Kordofan and other regions, killing tens of thousands of people and forcing millions from their homes. Both sides have been accused of serious violations during the conflict, allegations they have variously denied.
The crisis has consequences far beyond Sudan. Millions of Sudanese have crossed into neighboring Chad, Egypt, South Sudan, Ethiopia and other countries, placing additional pressure on governments and humanitarian systems already facing economic and security challenges. International diplomatic attempts to secure a lasting ceasefire have repeatedly failed, while funding shortages have limited the ability of humanitarian organizations to provide food, medicine and shelter. Sudan’s position between the Horn of Africa, the Sahel and the Red Sea also gives the conflict wider strategic importance, with prolonged instability threatening regional trade, migration routes and security.
For civilians arriving around El Obeid, however, the immediate concern is survival rather than the geopolitical struggle surrounding the war. Humanitarian groups warn that additional fighting could produce another wave of displacement while making already overcrowded communities even more difficult to supply. With no durable ceasefire in sight, Sudan remains one of the world’s gravest humanitarian emergencies, and the growing pressure around El Obeid illustrates how quickly the crisis can shift from one part of the country to another while civilians continue to bear most of its consequences.
