Darfur’s Humanitarian Crisis Deepens Amid Escalating Violence and Aid Blockades

South Darfur is facing an escalating humanitarian catastrophe marked by widespread violence, acute malnutrition, and a collapsing healthcare system, according to a new report by Médecins Sans Frontières . The report highlights severe shortages in protection and assistance for civilians, particularly women and children, as the region grapples with ongoing conflict and restricted humanitarian access.

Between January and March 2025, MSF treated 659 survivors of sexual violence in South Darfur, with over two-thirds of these cases involving rape. The report indicates that women are being attacked in their homes, while fleeing, gathering food, and working in fields. These assaults are often perpetrated by multiple individuals, including non-civilians, and are considered war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The situation has deteriorated further following the Rapid Support Forces seizure of the Zamzam displacement camp, which housed over 500,000 residents. The attack, which occurred in April 2025, included bombings and atrocities such as mass killings and sexual violence, resulting in hundreds of deaths and tens of thousands of displacements. The offensive has prompted increased reports of rape and disappearances, exacerbating the already dire conditions in the region.

The conflict has severely compromised food security, leaving millions at risk of malnutrition. In 2024, over 7,200 children under five years old and pregnant and breastfeeding women from Nyala and its surrounding areas were admitted into MSF’s outpatient feeding programmes with severe malnutrition. The lack of a humanitarian response commensurate with the needs and limited resources in South Darfur has resulted in continued gaps in life-saving services, especially the treatment of malnutrition.

The healthcare system in South Darfur is on the brink of collapse. From January to August 2024, there were 46 maternal deaths in Nyala Teaching and Kas Rural hospitals, where MSF teams provide obstetric care and other services. The scarcity of functioning health facilities and unaffordable transportation costs mean many women arrive at hospitals in critical condition. Around 78 percent of these deaths occurred within the first 24 hours following admission. Sepsis was the most common cause of maternal death, often resulting from unsanitary birthing conditions and a lack of basic medical supplies.

Children are also facing dire health challenges. In August 2024, 30,000 children under two years old were screened for malnutrition in South Darfur. The screenings revealed alarmingly high rates of global acute malnutrition, indicating a severe public health crisis. Additionally, outbreaks of measles, cholera, and diphtheria are spreading, driven by poor living conditions and disrupted vaccination campaigns.

Humanitarian aid efforts are being severely hampered by the ongoing conflict. The RSF has imposed significant restrictions and interference, preventing life-saving assistance from reaching those in desperate need. Aid workers report that the RSF is looting aid supplies and obstructing access, with constraints extending to demands for higher fees and greater control over aid operations. These actions have resulted in significant delays and rejections of travel permits for aid groups, leaving many people in dire conditions.

The international community has been slow to respond to the crisis. The withdrawal of a UN-AU peacekeeping mission, which previously offered some security to women, has left them exceptionally vulnerable. The Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa has condemned the international community’s failure to respond, highlighting the region’s slide into famine and genocide.

MSF is calling for a wide-scale humanitarian response, including a drastic increase in available funding and logistical capacities, securing food pipelines, and prepositioning food stocks in Chad and neighbouring countries. The organization emphasizes that without immediate intervention, the crisis will only deepen, putting countless lives at risk.