Human Lives Human Rights: UNICEF, the UN agency for children, said on Thursday that more than 13.6 million children urgently require lifesaving humanitarian assistance in Sudan, the highest number ever seen in the country amid fierce fighting.
The African nation has been in turmoil for weeks due to clashes between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia group.
The ongoing violence has put the lives and futures of children and families at risk, disrupting basic services and causing many health facilities to close, be damaged, or be destroyed, the agency said.
UNICEF asked for $838 million to respond to the crisis.
A total of 297 children were rescued from Mygoma orphanage in Khartoum and moved to a transit center in a safer place, it said.
“Many millions of children are still in danger across Sudan, exposed to the fighting, displacement, and the subsequent impact of on the delivery of lifesaving services-their lives and their futures are being harmed by this conflict every day,” said Mandeep O’Brien, UNICEF representative in Sudan.
More than 700 people have died, including 190 children, and 6,000 others have been wounded, according to the UN.
Over 1 million people have been forced to flee their homes and more than 840,000 have taken refuge in rural areas and other states while another 250,000 have crossed Sudanese borders.
The conflict had been brewing for months between the two sides over the merger of the RSF into the armed forces – a key requirement of Sudan’s transition agreement with political groups.
Sudan has been without a working government since fall 2021 when the military removed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s transitional government and declared a state of emergency in a move condemned by political forces as a “coup.”
The transitional period, which began in August 2019 after the removal of President Omar al-Bashir, had been set to end with elections in early 2024.
